AN: I know it's been a while, this year has sapped a lot of my creativity, but I promised I'm not going to leave this unfinished. I'm in the awkward in between major plot points chapters with this one as well so it's taking longer than expected. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter. Many thanks to my Clace queens who keep reading and encouraging me.

Disclaimer: I don't own Shadowhunters, Kudos to Cassandra Clare for this amazing legacy she's created.

Enjoy!

Chapter 9 - Discoveries

In the light of day things felt different. Jace supposed that was to be expected after so much rapid change, but it was more than the events running at rapid speed around them, it was Clary and everything they had shared last night. Jace couldn't quite put it into words, but there was something different between them now, a kind of closeness deeper than before.

He took a few minutes while Clary was in the shower to centre himself. He stood up pulling a loose pair of track pants on, making his way to the window, moving and stretching his limbs as he gazed out at the city in the morning light. It seemed a long time since he'd woken up feeling fully energised, but today he felt centred and alive, his breath coming easily for the first time in weeks, his body moving with a smoothness and release he hadn't felt since before he was possessed. He couldn't help but recall the memory of what had happened last night, smiling at how good it felt to have Clary with him, nothing between them anymore. He supposed this was how people distinguished between having sex and making love because what they'd shared was so much more than sex. His body still felt alive in a way he'd never experienced as he recalled the memories, turning away from the window to have a look around.

The room was lavish, adorned with landscape paintings encased by decorative frames like something out of a museum. Luxurious bedding decorated the generous king size bed they had shared, thick drapes hung from the overhead frame, corded off at the bed posts. In the light it looked almost like a bridal suite from a time long gone. There was a double door closet off to the side of the bathroom and a wide window overlooking the city on the opposite side of the room, long heavy drapes tied off at the sides. There was something both comforting and oddly unsettling about the place, like a home well lived in but by somebody else. Jace opened the closet to find an array of clothing, shoes and accessories that did not resemble Clary's style, nor Lilith's or Valentine's for that matter. It struck him as odd. Valentine never did anything unintentionally, every action he took was deliberate and calculated, so what or who was all of this for? He decided to take a closer look at the paintings, something drawing him to the one closest to the bed.

It was a beautiful manor, large multiple story house overlooking a well kept garden either side of the pathway to the house, fields of green grass and tall trees surrounding, offset by a large lake. Something about it was so familiar, like he'd been there before, but he couldn't quite recall. He traced his hand lightly over the signature at the bottom, realisation dawning on him.

Jocelyn Fairchild, Fairchild Manor

"Beautiful isn't it."

Jace turned to see Clary wrapped in a large towel fresh from her shower, using smaller towel to dry her hair as she stepped toward him, sitting on the bed as she continued with her hair. He couldn't help but smile, still getting used to the fact that she was really here with him despite their increasingly difficult circumstances. "Well… I can see where you get your talent from." He commented. "It looks a lot like I remember."

"You've been there?" Clary questioned, gazing up at Jace intrigued.

"Yes…" Jace stated, feeling nostalgic. "…but that was long after it burned down, at least I think so… Valentine may have brought me there when I was younger, it's hard to remember sometimes…" Jace paused for a moment. He didn't have many memories from his earliest years. He'd never considered before how much may have happened in those years that he might never know about. "This is different… I wish I could've seen it like this." Jace sat beside Clary, crossing one leg up on the bed, twiddling his thumbs in his lap as Clary listened intently. "It's the painting…" He continued. "I remember seeing it in the basement of Valentine's cabin when I first got there." Jace felt a strange sense of sadness looking at the picture, almost like a longing for something he couldn't explain. Something about it made him feel like that young boy again, lonely and trying so hard to prove he was brave enough to be the Shadowhunter Valentine wanted him to be.

He felt Clary place her hand over his, somehow sensing his vulnerability. "Are you okay?" She asked gently.

Jace squeezed her hand gently. "Yeah, it's just… I don't know how to say it… Valentine was a monster, but… there were times he wasn't that bad…" He smiled wryly. "It's hard to understand… I'm not sure I really understand it."

Clary smiled sympathetically. "Jace… he might not have been the father you needed, but he was still the only father you knew and that doesn't just go away."

Jace thought for a moment. His immediate instinct was to resist, but the more he thought about it, the more it made sense. "Yeah… I guess you're right. It's just… I don't think it'll ever feel right… thinking of Valentine that way…"

Clary nodded in understanding. "Trust me I get it… not the same way you do, but I do get it. It makes you feel… wrong inside…" For a moment she looked far away, eyes unfocused like she was lost in a memory. She rubbed her right shoulder lightly where Jace saw a rune he'd not noticed before. Her action seemed instinctual like she wasn't really aware she was doing it.

"New rune…" Jace stated breaking her out of the moment. "One of yours?"

Clary's eyes focused on him again snapping out of it. "This one?" Jace nodded. "No, this one… well…" She seemed hesitant to answer like she wasn't sure it was something she should say, but she continued. "Lilith gave me this actually… part of her spell to bring Jonathan back."

Jace looked at it, wanting to examine it more closely. "May I?" He gestured to touch.

Clary nodded. "Okay."

Jace traced his fingertips lightly over the lines. He couldn't explain it, but something about it made him feel sick. Most runes healed after a few days, Shadowhunters healed quickly, but this one looked like it was only freshly drawn. "You said you and Jonathan were in Edom for something like 6 months?"

Clary's eyes looked curious. "Around that long yes. Why?"

Jace met her eyes concerned. "It's just… this rune should have healed by now…" He stated. "Did Lilith say anything more about it?"

Clary shook her head. "All I know is it's some kind of connection between me and Jonathan… Lilith said she needed my life force to bring him back… my heart… something about the blood connection required to perform the resurrection spell."

Jace was definitely concerned now. He stood pacing a little, unsure of how to respond. Blood magic was powerful, that much he knew, powerful and often dangerous to the recipient. "Does it hurt?" He asked.

"Sometimes." Clary admitted.

Jace sat down beside her again taking her hand in his. "Are you okay?"

Clary smiled gratefully. "Yes."

"You're sure?" Jace prodded.

Clary reached out and placed her hand on his cheek tenderly. "You worry too much Jace. I'm fine. Really."

Jace placed his hand over hers and smiled gently. "Okay. Just promise me one thing?"

Clary squeezed his hand still connected to hers. "Anything."

"If you're ever not fine, tell me?" Jace looked at her seriously, sincerely.

Clary's heart swelled with love for him, she leaned in kissing him softly, gratefully. "Okay." She agreed before pulling back slowly holding his gaze for a moment. "I'd better get dressed." She stated a little reluctantly. Clary stood and went to the dresser to pick out some clothes, pulling on a pair of black jeans, black tank and black leather jacket before coming back to him, placing her hands on his shoulders smiling at him fondly. "I need to go talk to Jonathan. Will you be okay on your own for a while?" She teased.

"I'll be fine." Jace smirked, briefly considering ripping off her clothes and ravishing her right there and then. "I guess I should shower too."

Clary smirked. "You're making it really hard to leave right now." She insinuated.

Jace stood, cupping her face in his hands tenderly. "It's always hard leaving you." He stated before leaning in and kissing her softly, lingering for a long moment after, enjoying the closeness with her. "I'm gonna go shower." He whispered low and husky. "Feel free to picture me naked…"

He felt her breath hitch slightly as her fingers curled a little resting on his chest and he smirked a little smugly knowing how he was affecting her. "Jace… If I don't walk away right now, we're never gonna leave this room…"

Jace laughed lightly, not at all unhappy at the thought. "I'll let you go then." He whispered before kissing her sweetly on her forehead and walking toward the bathroom.

Clary took a deep breath, exhaling sharply as she watched him walk away, biting her bottom lip as she observed the way his muscles moved. He was almost too beautiful to be real she sometimes thought, too beautiful to possibly be hers, but then he would look at her like she was the only thing in the world he could ever want and she knew, as crazy as it still felt, that he was hers completely. She shook her head, smiling to herself as she walked out the door.

Alec Lightwood had never been one to waste time thinking about things he couldn't control, rather preferring to push past his obstacles and focus on what mattered. One thing he'd learned as head of the New York Institute was that there was always something to focus on aside from any personal matters he had. Lately though he'd been having trouble focusing and found himself staring into space more than he wanted to admit. It was harder than he'd anticipated letting Jace go, as much as he understood why he needed to leave. They'd spent nearly every day together since Jace had come to live with them as a child. It felt… wrong to not have him around right now, like part of Alec was being pulled toward him wherever he was.

Alec picked up his phone, pacing the room unconsciously, looking at Jace's message again, still wondering how to respond.

Alec, I'm okay. I know you're worried, but I promise I'm not gonna do anything stupid. Hope everyone is well.

"Define stupid…" Alec muttered to himself still pacing. He knew Jace, stupid was always relative. Recklessness was practically built into his DNA along with his well known control. He was careful with other people's lives and completely reckless with his own. It was one of Jace's attributes that made it both perfect and terrifying being his parabatai. Perfect because Alec balanced his recklessness by making sure Jace knew his life was valuable and terrifying because he was never really sure how much Jace valued his own life and Alec knew how willing he was to sacrifice himself. All Shadowhunters seemed to have a morbid fascination to some extent with death, but then there were those like Jace who practically courted death on a daily basis.

Alec sighed heavily feeling the weight on his shoulders more than normal. He was about to respond to Jace's message when he heard a knock at door. "Come in." He called out as he put his phone away standing at attention as Izzy walked in. "Izzy." He greeted her. "What brings you here?"

Izzy looked a little serious as she stepped in holding a tablet. "I came to update you, there's been reports of some unusual activity I thought you should know about."

Alec's brow furrowed a little as he went to his desk taking a seat. "Tell me." He gestured for Izzy to take a seat next to him.

Izzy sat down tapping into the reports on her tablet. "The Paris institute has been reporting some… unusual demonic activity…"

Alec took a few minutes to read through the data before looking at her concerned. "Are they sure?"

Izzy nodded. "They're sure."

Alec stood taking a deep breath. "So they've got demons surfacing in greater numbers the past few weeks, signs of gathering, but they're not actually doing anything, which would suggest… that they're being controlled."

Izzy nodded mirroring Alec's grim expression. "Exactly. And that suggests there's someone or something out there capable of controlling them without the mortal cup."

Alec nodded gravely, his suspicions gnawing at the back of his mind. "Either that or the Clave has bigger problems than they're admitting."

"You mean the cup may've been taken?" Izzy suggested. "Wouldn't they tell us if that happened?"

Alec raised one eye brow incredulously. "Honestly it wouldn't surprise me if they kept it a secret right now. They're not exactly happy with me pushing back over Jace. Especially not with letting him leave the institute right now."

"You told them?" Izzy asked.

"I had to." Alec confirmed.

Izzy looked concerned. "I thought they'd cleared him."

"They have." Alec stated. "They're just not that happy about him leaving the institute considering everything that's happened. They're questioning my judgement." Alec crossed his arms protectively.

Izzy stood placing a hand on Alec's shoulder. "You're doing the best you can Alec. This can't be easy for you."

Alec patted her hand a small grateful smile crossing his face. "How are you holding up?" He asked.

Izzy sighed a little shaky. "I miss her…" She trailed off taking a deep breath. "And Jace… I just wish I knew what to do."

Alec turned to face her stepping closer pulling her into a hug. "I know." He agreed as they held onto each other for a moment before stepping back. "I'll send this data to the Clave, it's definitely something they need to know. I'll ask about the mortal cup and see how they respond."

"And if they refuse to answer?" Izzy asked.

"Then we'll know there's something going on they don't want us to know about." Alec stated.

Izzy nodded. "Okay. Will you be around later?"

Alec shook his head. "I need to see Magnus, but I'll have my phone on alert if anything comes up."

Izzy smiled before turning to leave. "Say hi to Magnus for me." She called out as she walked out.

Alec sighed as he reviewed the data again, an uneasy feeling he couldn't shake rising. "So much for quiet." He muttered as he pressed send and prepared to make the call to Jia Penhallow.

Jace emerged after a long shower feeling fresh and relaxed. He slowed as he approached the living room staying out of sight, back to the wall listening intently to the conversation.

"I need you to distract him." Jonathan was saying. "Shouldn't be too hard considering he's basically glued to your side…"

Clary scoffed and Jace could hear the snark in her voice as she spoke "Just because you're jealous doesn't mean you need to be mean. Jace is his own person, he just… loves me." Jace would've smiled but there was an edge to her voice that made him uneasy.

Jonathan let out a short laugh and Jace could hear the sneer in his voice. "Oh yes how could I forget how much in love the two of you are… speaking of which did you enjoy your romp with your lover last night? You seemed rather… enthusiastic…"

Jace could practically hear Clary's eyes rolling. "I've already told you, my love life is none of your business." She stated.

"Now now my dear sister…" Jonathan tiskd. "You know as well as I do that it is my business." Jonathan replied. "This whole plan is contingent upon you being able to keep him in line."

"I know." Clary responded annoyed.

"So?" Jonathan asked like he was expecting more.

"So what?" Clary prodded casually.

"So… can you do it? Can you keep him in check?" Jonathan sounded serious now.

"What do you mean?" Clary asked sounding unsure as to whether she wanted the response.

"You may need to lie to him Clary, distract him from the things he can't be trusted to know. Keep him in the dark. Can you do that?" Jonathan's voice had an edge that was unsettling. Jace knew exactly what he was doing, pushing her to see how far she would go.

Clary was silent for a while before responding. "There's a difference between your secrets and mine." Clary stated. "I will always keep your secrets, but…" She sighed heavily. "I won't lie to Jace unless absolutely necessary Jonathan. I won't do that to him."

Jonathan seemed the accept her answer though the edge to his voice was still there. "Just remember which secrets are mine to keep."

Clary's voice was firm, unwavering in her conviction. "Agreed. As long as you remember which secrets that are mine to keep as well. What happens between me and Jace is just between me and Jace. I won't jeopardise that Jonathan."

Jonathan's voice grew almost sincere. "Because you love him…" He stated, a tinge of something in his voice, not exactly jealously, something far more dangerous, vulnerability… fear.

"Yes." Clary confirmed softly, trying to soothe him while being honest. "I love him Jonathan. But I also love you."

"Okay." Jonathan acknowledged. "Just one last question though."

Clary's voice was a little wary. "What?" She asked.

And the sneer was back. "Does he know how quickly you would drop him if I asked you to?"

There was a moment of silence that seeped into Jace's bones as he waited for Clary's response. "Jonathan…" she spoke soothingly, but with an almost mechanical edge that sent a chill through Jace. "You don't have to force me to choose. I'm with you brother. All the way."

The edge in Jonathan's voice was almost threatening, nearly enough to make him come out of hiding. "You'd better be right about him sister. We can't afford any breaches."

Jace couldn't quite hear Clary's response, her voice was too low. He stood still for a few moments breathing deep, calming himself. He couldn't go in there looking rattled, he needed them to believe he was in the dark even if he looked suspicious. When he felt he had a handle on his emotions he walked into the room smiling just a bit cocky in his demeanour. "Morning." He greeted them both, hands resting in his pockets casually.

Clary and Jonathan turned to face him like they'd been caught out in a secret and were trying to act natural about it. Jace found it curious the way they moved, almost in sync at times, like they were one person, like twins… He stored away his observations making a document in his mind. He didn't want to make assumptions, but he couldn't shake the fact that there was something very wrong between them and he was determined to understand it before it was too late. Clary smiled at Jace in spite of the awkwardness of the moment, holding his gaze as she laid back in the lounge chair looking relaxed. Jace couldn't help but smile back as he approached taking her hand in his and squeezing gently.

"So…" Jace began. "What's the plan for today?"

"I have some errands to run." Jonathan stated simply. "As for later…" Jonathan approached Jace staring him down as if he was challenging him. "Well…" He smiled wickedly. "I'll let Clary fill you in." He brushed past Jace's shoulder deliberately as he left much to Jace's relief. He would put up with a great deal for Clary, but Jonathan was… well… Jonathan.

Clary stood, still holding Jace's hand meeting his gaze. "How was your shower?" She asked tilting her head to one side biting her lip playfully.

"It was great, relaxing." Jaces leaned in meeting her lips for a brief kiss. "Did you think of me?" He winked flirtatiously, he couldn't help himself.

Clary placed her hand on his side caressing him gently through his shirt, nodding slowly, not even trying to hide her thoughts as she planted gentle lingering kisses around the corner of his mouth, up to his ear, feeling the very slight hitch in his breath as she spoke. "Imaginary you is very…very…" She trailed of giggling softly, still feeling giddy as images of their night flashed in her mind.

"Good?" Jace prodded, raising one eyebrow playfully as she met his gaze again, close enough that he could feel her breath on his face sweet and inviting.

"Very good…" Clary trailed off again gazing long and hard at his lips before meeting his eyes again. Jace brought one hand to her face gently caressing over her jaw, drawing out the moment before leaning in melding his mouth with hers gentle, seeking, sensual, lingering after, forehead resting against hers, both of them feeling the tension building between them.

"You know… Jonathan won't be back for a while…" She suggested stepping closer and placing her other hand on his chest.

Jace smirked cocking a lopsided grin as he held her arms gently. His worries from the moments before seemed to fade as he looked at her now, more than a little tempted to take her back to her room for the rest of the day. As much as he wanted to however, he had other plans in mind. "I was wondering actually, this apartment… how much do you know about it?"

Clary's eyes perked in curiosity. "A little bit, not a lot apart from the fact that Valentine owned it, used it to hide in occasionally. Why do you ask?"

"The closet in your room, the clothing, Jocelyn's painting… I dunno there's just something strange about it all…"

Clary let him go, backing off and leaning on the arm chair. "You're thinking Valentine had an ulterior motive?" She asked.

Jace nodded. "Well if there's one thing Valentine always had it was an ulterior motive. He never did anything unintentionally, I'm just not sure what or who all of this was for…"

Clary was pensive for a moment. "Do you think it's something we need to worry about?" She asked.

Jace shrugged unsure. "I don't know… I guess there's just something that still gets to me even now knowing he's dead…" He held her gaze carefully, he wasn't sure what bothered him so much, all he knew was something about this apartment was off, like even in death Valentine still had plans effecting all of them. "I guess that's only natural."

Clary nodded. "Yeah… I guess it is." She agreed and then smirked again in excitement. "Okay, well if you're not up for a day in bed, I have an idea of how you can distract yourself from my dead father's sinister plans."

Jace's face perked up. "Oh yeah?" He inquired.

"Weapons chest." Clary stated raising one eyebrow suggestively. She was starting to learn his tricks he mused.

Jace grinned. "Are you sure that's okay with Jonathan? Wouldn't wanna go arming the boyfriend." he teased.

Clary raised one eyebrow suggestively. "Well, what Jonathan doesn't know won't hurt him. Besides, it would feel good to train. It's been a while since we sparred."

Jace couldn't help but feel excited. He still had some reserve at the memories of the last time, but this wasn't that. He was in control and he was ready. "Okay, if you think you can handle it…" He winked and Clary laughed grinning.

"One day I'm gonna beat you." She stated confidently, placing her hands on her hips and standing tall… well tall for her anyway. Jace had always admired her for how fierce she could be for someone so small.

"You can think that if you like." Jace stated cocking a lopsided grin, not even trying to hide his playful smugness.

Clary ignored his smugness and pursed her lips looking Jace up and down flirtatiously. "Come on then, talk is cheep." She stood up gesturing for him to follow.

"Can't argue with that." He agreed following after her in excited anticipation.

It had been a long time since Simon had played in a band. These days most of his time was spent holed up in his apartment composing on his own music, which honestly he didn't mind so much most of the time. Music was his one constant amongst all of the insanity in his life. Ever since he'd become a vampire he'd felt like a bit of a lone wolf. Clary was there for him as much as she could be and Izzy had been his rock lately, but he couldn't help but feel like there was something missing in his life. As much as he was enjoying being able to perform his own music, he missed the collaboration of making music with other people, the friendship, the constant of having a crew to have his back. He worried about Clary now more than ever, but he knew that Jace would do anything to protect her and he couldn't just wait around for word of what was happening, he needed to keep living his life. So he composed.

The sound of his phone buzzing broke him out of his reverie, he picked it up a smile coming to his face as he answered. "Hey Becs, what's up?"

"Hey Simon." Rebecca's voice rang out. "I'm in town for a few days, was just wondering if I could schedule in some time to hang with my baby bro? You know if you can tear yourself away from from being a rock star for a few hours?" She teased.

Simon laughed. "I don't think you can call playing to local bar crowds being a rock star, but yeah I can fit you in. Where are you?" Simon sensed something in the air, a scent so familiar… he turned walking to the apartment door just as someone knocked, he opened it to see his sister smiling widely at him.

"Right outside your door." She laughed wrapping him in a tight hug.

Simon held onto her for a moment before pulling back. "This is a surprise. What brings you back?"

"Do I need a reason to see my baby bro?" Rebecca shrugged trying to stay casual but with an edge he'd come to recognise as her mothering side over the years.

"No, but you've got that face on." Simon pointed out.

Rebecca raised her eyebrows feigning ignorance. "What face?"

"You know what face." Simon raised one eyebrow, feigning seriousness.

Rebecca dropped the act, a small compassionate smile crossing her face. "Fine, I'm here to make sure you're okay."

Simon shrugged. "Why wouldn't I be?" He asked casually pretending like she didn't know about everything that had happened lately.

Rebecca tilted her head to one side, smiling softly. "Come on Simon, you don't have to pretend with me. Everything with mom, the vampire stuff and now Clary… I just wanna make sure you're okay."

Simon dropped his head feeling the pangs of grief that had become so familiar lately. He missed his mother, and he missed Clary every single day waiting for a time when he could see her again, wondering what was happening to her, happening to both of them. "It's okay…" Simon started, being careful to try and not give anything away. "I'm okay… I miss mom and I miss Clary every day… but I'm okay."

Rebecca seemed to accept his response, but still seemed a little suspicious. "Okay, but if you're ever not okay, you know you can call me right?"

Simon nodded. "Yeah, I know that." He'd always been relatively close to his family, but it had been really nice being able to finally open up completely to Becs these past few weeks.

"So, this is your place huh?" She changed the subject. "Pretty cool, very you."

Simon nodded. "Yeah, I got lucky with this one."

"So how's Mia? You two still dating?" Rebecca asked teasing.

Simon's face fell a little. "Well… ah… we broke up actually."

Rebecca looked surprised. "Really? That's too bad, she seemed nice. Are you okay?"
"Yeah I'm fine, it was… pretty amicable actually." Simon smiled to himself. It felt good to know that at least some things in his life were fine. Sometimes he still wondered how he'd managed to still be on good terms with Mia and Clary after everything that happened. After the past few weeks he'd learned not to question it, he just felt lucky.

"Well that's good. That's more than most people get." Rebecca smiled. She knew her brother was always one to try and see the bright side. It was good to see him smile after everything he'd been through lately. "So how are you filling all your free time?"

"Writing music mostly." Simon stated. "And hanging out with Izzy a bit…" He realised his mistake as soon as he said it.

Rebecca raised her eye brows in approval. "Izzy… who's Izzy? Hanging out with Izzy huh?" she grinned knowingly.

"What?" Simon felt his cheeks blushing outside of his control. He knew that look in her eyes. "She's a friend of Clary's. She's just been checking in on me through all of this… what?" Simon interjected Rebecca's giggling at his not so subtly blushing.

"You're blushing! Just the mention of her name and you're all red!" She teased. "Is she hot?"

Simon blushed even deeper. "I'm not talking about this with you." He protested.

Rebecca raised one eyebrow amused. "That means she is."

"Okay fine." He admitted, "She's hot, that doesn't mean anything though, we're just friends." He insisted as Rebecca laughed louder, absolutely not believing him. "Can we just change the subject?"

Rebecca forced herself to sop laughing and made a zipping her lips gesture. "Okay, sure. So do you have a bit of time to hang today? I was thinking of taking a walk along the river. Maybe get some coffee?"

Simon nodded. "Okay, yeah, sounds good. I'll grab my jacket." He pondered the idea as he went into his room picking out a jacket. He'd be lying if he said he'd never thought about Izzy that way, there was probably not a single man in the world who hadn't thought of her like that at some point. She was hot… and incredibly smart and kind and… okay so maybe he did have a bit of a crush, but after the year he'd had he was just happy to have her as a friend. He walked out smiling fondly at his sister, feeling grateful to have her here today.

"Okay, let's go."

Jace had always loved training with Clary right from the start. She wasn't very strong or skilled yet, but what she lacked in strength and skill she made up for in creativity, speed and an instinctive knack for taking advantage of her size, constantly improving and adapting. She was also starting to become attuned to the follow of fighting with her shadowunter senses, letting go and giving into the raw energy flowing through her. And although he could always see what she was doing before she did it, she was unpredictable and fierce in a way that both excited him and made him feel sorry for her opponents. He wondered often what she would have been like if she'd been trained from as young as he was, how different she might have been, whether that would have changed the kind of relationship they had with each other now. One thing he knew for sure, she would be giving him a run for his money now if she had.

They'd opted for the shorter seraph blades, taking advantage of the wide living room space to drill in movements. They started slow, Jace acting as instructor, moving through the motions slowly, working on formations and techniques. It wasn't long before she was almost up to speed, swapping between attack and defence as Jace danced around her challenging her space, admiring the way she responded to him, before allowing her to attack as hard and fast as she wanted while he blocked. She was starting to get good by the time they took a break, both panting and pouring with sweat.

"We should probably put the weapons away before Jonathan gets back." Clary panted before taking a long drink of water, wiping her brow. She didn't look tired though, she looked exhilarated.

"Okay, if you've had enough…" Jace trailed off with a lopsided smirk stepping closer still holding his blade.

Clary dragged her eyes hungrily over him, stepping close enough to feel his breath on her face. "Have you had enough?" She breathed holding his gaze but taking no action to close the gap between them.

Jace was torn for a moment having her close enough to breathe in her scent and almost taste her on his lips. All it would take is a gentle lean and he could capture her lips, but he held his stance, daring her to close the distance. "I could keep going." He stated simply, barely managing to keep the raspiness out of his voice.

She leaned in moving her head to the side and whispered in his ear without ever touching him. "I could keep going all night…" she trailed off, deliberately letting her breath cascade over his sweat moistened skin. His flesh prickled under her breath as a shiver ran through him. She backed away slowly, still refusing to touch him as she returned his gaze again slowly leaning in as if to kiss him before placing her hand over his to ask for the blade back.

He obliged his breath hitching slightly in a way he knew she'd heard and watched her smirk as she backed away, knowing exactly what she was doing to him. "Tease." He stated smiling widely, not even sorry. He enjoyed the fiery side of her, it was one of his favourite things about her.

Clary didn't answer, she just simply put away the blades, subtly letting her hips sway as she walked. "So…" she started as she walked back to him. "Hand to hand?"

Jace furrowed his brows in mock concern. "You sure you can handle that?"

In answer Clary ducked low almost managing to jab him in the ribs as he blocked her elbow grasping her arm and pulling him against his chest, manoeuvring her into a head lock, holding her just firm enough that he knew she couldn't escape but not close enough to cause any damage. Clary figured out quickly that she wasn't strong enough to shift his arm chasing instead to stamp heavily on his foot, startling him just enough to get one arm free and jabbed him hard in the ribs, taking advantage of his momentary shock to slip down and free her head, quickly shifting to his side. Jace swivelled quickly back to face her, grinning with pride as they circled each other waiting for the moment to strike.

Jace moved first this time swinging his arm low to catch her hip. Clary blocked him taking advantage of his open stance to shove her free palm into his solar plexus forcing him off balance enough for her to bring her kick around to the back of his leg forcing him to his knee as she moved fast coming around behind him and trapping his arms around him, her breath tinging in his ear.

"Where'd you learn that?" He gasped as she held on tight, pinning his leg to the ground with her foot.

"I've been practicing." She states simply and he smiles, pretending to struggle. If he were any other person, she would probably have him restrained by now. He briefly considered letting her think she had him before grabbing her arms and swinging her over his head, holding onto her just tight enough to control her decent before letting her lay on her back as she huffed a little in annoyance.

He reached out his hand to help her up, chuckling in amusement at the way her eyes lit up in challenge. "So that's how you're gonna play it, huh…" she stated, a wicked grin crossing her face they both acknowledged the game was on.

They threw punches and kicks, blocking each other smoothly, ducking, swivelling around each other in a slow dance becoming more and more accustomed to the way each other moved. He'd managed to get her pinned underneath him 3 times in a row, watching her get more and more frustrated each time much to his amusement. The forth time he had her corned by the door, getting ready to strike when suddenly she slipped away using her speed rune as she rolled off of him making him losing sight of her just long enough for her to jump, grabbing her door frame and wrapping her legs firm around his neck tight as she hurled herself into a dive roll taking him with her. He landed put his arms down to break his fall realising his mistake too soon when she straddled his chest squeezing her thighs vice like around him.

Jace laid still looking up at her, enjoying the triumph on her face. He knew he could easily bring his leg up and drive his knee into her back or force himself up under her lightweight, but instead he chuckled, grinning widely, beaming with pride. He was just about to congratulate her when he heard the door click. Both of their heads snapped in the direction of the door momentarily frozen in place at the sight of Jonathan's smug smile as he pause in the door way crossing his arms, leaning against the door frame.

"Hello sister."

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