I read a story on Archive Of Our Own that gave me the idea for this one. I love the idea of Clary and Alec having a friendship where they just insult each other all the time and are super sarcastic, but that Alec really cares when something serious happens. This is just a few brief interactions between the two!

He had hated her, originally. She'd caused Jace to act irrationally, but eventually Alec had realized that Valentine was going to come back regardless of whether Clary Fray had appeared in their lives or not. Now, he was starting to realize that she was a permanent fixture at the Institute, and some part of him wasn't too upset about that.

"Hey douche face, what are you up to?" Clary asked, dropping her ass directly onto his desk and almost covering the paper work he was filling out, if he hadn't moved it.

"Paperwork. Are you in here for a reason?" He asked, glaring up at the red-head through his eyelashes.

"Yes. I need your help." Clary replied, crossing her arms. Alec scowled.

"I'm busy, Fray. Find someone else. Where's Jace?" He asked. Clary shrugged with a hum.

"Just help me." She whined.

"No. Now get out." Alec replied with a glare. "This is a lot of paperwork and I don't really want to be here all night."

"Why not? Got a hot date?" She winked, sliding off of his desk and strutting to the door. Alec rolled his eyes.

"If you must know, Magnus and I have dinner plans." He replied. Clary smirked.

"Use protection! Bye!" She waved and hurried from the office, closing the door just in time for the book Alec had propelled her way to hit the closed door. The black-haired boy shook his head with a sigh but couldn't help the small smile that curled his lips upward.

SHSHSHSHSHSHSHSH

"Alec, can you knock it off?" Clary batted the raven-haired man's hand away from her face, rolling her eyes as she heard him giggle softly; something that she never knew she would hear.

"Why, are you trying to do something?" He asked, poking her cheek again. Clary huffed, slamming her sketchbook shut, and turned the full force of her angry glare on him.

"Yes. Yes, I am. Can I help you?" She demanded. Alec smirked and stood to his full height, shaking his head.

"Isabelle is looking for you." He replied. Clary rolled her eyes.

"You couldn't just say that at first?" She demanded, standing up and poking him in the chest. He snorted and shook his head.

"It was more fun this way." He replied with a small smirk.

"Fuck off." She rolled her eyes but shot him a wink as she passed him to let him know that she was joking.

"Gladly, Fray!" He called after her, shaking his head as she lifted her finger to him.

SHSHSHSHSHSHSHSH

Clary was normally pretty good at dealing with pain, but the deep cut in her arm made her squirm as Jace pressed a wad of rags to it to stem the bleeding.

"That hurts." She hissed, eyes slamming shut.

"I know, I'm sorry." Jace replied with a frown, glancing up at her. "If I could make the pain go away, I would." He replied.

"Suck it up, Fray." Alec murmured from the door. Jace turned, shooting an ice-cold glare at his parabatai.

"Alec." He hissed, but much to his surprise, Clary snorted out a laugh.

"Fuck off, Lightwood." She replied with a small giggle. Jace glanced between the two, eyes wide with confusion. The man was startled to see a small smile on Alec's face, and even more startled to see the caring look in his eyes.

"I would if you wouldn't be such a baby all the time. It's amusing." He replied, but Jace could see that he was actually worried about her.

"Shut up, Lightwood." Clary replied, but her response was less fiery than he would've expected.

"Get some sleep, you big whiner." Alec replied with a roll of his eyes and a soft smile.

SHSHSHSHSHSHSHSH

"Alec, move your big head so I can get a clear view." Clary hissed, shoving the man she'd come to see as her older brother. The Lightwood glanced over at her with a roll of his eyes but moved slightly to the left, so she could see the demon they were hunting better. Jace and Izzy had been sent on a diplomatic mission to the Seelie Queen, leaving Clary and Alec to deal with a lower demon that had been terrorizing Mundanes in Manhattan. They'd easily tracked it, but Clary was starting to feel nervous. It would be one of her only hunts without Jace, and she wasn't sure she was ready.

"Hey." Clary looked up to see Alec staring at her, eyes bright in the darkness. "Don't worry about it. I'm right here. I've got your back." He promised, smiling. Clary was startled. She'd only seen him do that a few times. "On my mark."

As steady as ever, Alec raised his bow and fired an arrow towards the demon. Clary watched it hit its mark and then lunged forward silently, her two daggers slick in her sweaty palms. The daggers when through its heart and the creature screamed before falling away to nothing. Clary turned, a bright smile on her face.

"Alec, did you see that?!" She demanded. However, Alec's eyes only widened, and he lurched towards her, one hand outstretched.

"Clary, look out!" He yelled, but before he could reach her, she felt a sharp sting in her side. Suddenly, there was fire pulsing through her abdomen, and she felt herself falling to the side. Alec released a few arrows into the second demon, not even paying attention as he dropped to his knees next to the now convulsing Clary. For a lower demon, the venom seemed incredibly strong. "Fucking shit." He hissed, examining the wound in her side.

"That's the most I've ever heard you curse." She gasped, managing a giggle somehow.

"Oh my god, shut up Fray." Alec replied, rolling his eyes despite the situation.

"You gonna make me?" She asked, ignoring the blood dribbling from her mouth. "Isn't demon venom supposed to cause crazy hallucinations?" She asked. Alec shook his head, mouth turned into a frown.

"Some of it does. This doesn't, just causes a lot of pain. It probably feels like fire in your veins." He was clearly speaking from experience. "Fuck, I don't know how to get you back to the institute." He whispered, more to himself.

"I could walk maybe." Clary replied, coughing again.

"Clary. Shut the fuck up." Alec snapped, causing the girl to seal her lips. "You're lucky that you're not that heavy." With no other choices, Alec hefted the girl into his arms and hurriedly jogged down the street, glancing at the towering spires of the Institute, clearly visible over the roofs of the lower buildings around it.

"Are you sure this doesn't cause hallucinations? Because it looks an awful lot like you may be worried about me." Clary replied, staring up into his slate blue eyes and wondering when they'd gotten close enough for Alec to be this worried.

"Shut up." Alec muttered, but didn't say he wasn't worried.

"Hey." Cleary reached up, a shaking hand coming into contact with Alec's cheek. He couldn't help but notice how clammy and cold it was. "You know I'm gonna be okay right?" She asked.

"Yeah." Alec murmured. "I'm a little more worried about what Jace is going to do to me when he finds out that I let you get hurt." He glanced up as they came to the door. As if on cue, it burst open and Jace flew out, all golden locks and angry eyes.

"What happened?!" He demanded, taking Clary from his arms and staring down at her.

"It wasn't Alec's fault." Clary assured him, reaching up to grab his cheek. "Anyway, I think I'm going to take a nap." Before Jace or Alec could respond, the girl's head had dropped, eyes falling shut.

"She'll be fine." Alec stated, glancing down at her. "We couldn't get rid of her that easily anyway."