Thank you for taking the time to read my story ;). I hope I meet all of your expectations.

Enjoy!

Oh yeah…I am definitely not Cassandra Claire… and I definitely don't own any of this. All rights go to the genius herself! Gosh I love these books…

CLARY p.o.v.

"Absolutely not. Jace, no." Maryse marked her words with a seriousness that I had not yet heard since that fateful night in Alicante.

Jace slowly lifted his head to meet her eyes, his hands gripping the arms of the wooden chair he was seated in. "Why not, Maryse?" His tone was unyielding. "Who better to instruct her than me? Who better to take care of her throughout this process than me?" His eyes were fierce. "Tell me that."

I stood against the wall, unsure of what to do or say. I hated that mother and son were fighting over me - again. No, Jace was not Maryse's biological son, but he was her son none-the-less.

"Jace," she paused, pinching the bridge of her nose, "we have already discussed this. It is not my hand at force here. It is at the hand of The Clave. They do not want Clary's training to be in any way hindered by the feelings you two hold for one another. They feel that it could weaken her abilities."

That is ridiculous! I wanted to shout. Jace is the perfect person to teach me. Who else knows my strengths and weaknesses better than Jace does!

"That is ridiculous." He mirrored my thoughts exactly. "They should know that no one outside of me would put more time and effort into her growth. You know this as well as I do. I will not let her be exploited!"

She sighed and crossed the room, stopping in front of the fireplace. "I'm sorry, but it is simply not my or your decision this time." She grabbed a piece of paper from the mantel and turned toward me, holding it up in the air. "They have already chosen your tutor. They sent a fire message just this afternoon. He'll arrive at any moment."

I looked at Jace, whose eyes were focused on the little piece of paper as if it held all of the secrets to life itself.

"Who is 'he'?" he asked sternly.

After a slight hesitation she turned her head toward Jace, "I know that you are not going to be approving of this, but they have chosen to send Tristan."

Jace stood immediately, looking at her as if he just spotted the ghost of Valentine himself. His voice was quiet and deadly. "Tristan?" he seethed, his eyes boring into hers. The glow from the fire reflected off of his skin, making him look like the most beautiful avenging angel - my avenging angel. "Tell me. How did you fail to mention this sooner? There is absolutely no way in hell I'm letting him come close to her. Why isn't he rotting in a jail somewhere? Why did he ever come back? And why didn't you tell me that this was an option in the first place?!"

"Jace, I didn't want you to–"

"No! Absolutely not! I will not leave her in the hands of that child!" He stalked away, hands clenched.

I spoke quietly, afraid to test the air with my words. "Who's Tristan?"

Maryse continued as if I hadn't spoken. "Jace, I know how you must feel about this, but he has changed. And he is not a child anymore. He is the same age as you, do you consider yourself a child." It was not a question seeing as they both already knew the answer. "He only trains the most promising of Shadowhunters. The Clave will vouch for him; he's been working for them for quite some time now. They have no reason to distrust him any longer."

"No reason? Of course they have a reason! He helped Valentine turn me into a heartless bastard! And if he's such a great warrior, where in the hell was he during Valentine's attacks?" he screamed in frustration.

I hurried over to him, turning his face toward me. "Who is Tristan, Jace? What did he do to you?" When he cast his eyes down and didn't answer I released his face and turned to Mayrse, angry at whoever this was that caused him any pain. If this person could hurt Jace so badly, then I didn't want to know him at all! "What is going on here?" My voice rising, "Someone answer me. I will not be shut out of my own life!"

Maryse blew out a long breath and spoke. "Tristan and Jace grew up together." She glanced at Jace, expecting him to carry on with the story. When he didn't make a move, possibly to angry to speak, she continued. "They were best friends in childhood, as well as training partners. Early on in their lives Tristan helped Valentine lie to Jace about the intentions of his 'experiments'; not knowing even for himself the extent of what Valentine was planning to do. Valentine used Tristan to acquire full access to Jace. He was used as a tool in order for Valentine to gain Jace's trust and loyalty."

I drew in a sharp intake of breath reaching for Jace's hand - which had gone cold as ice.

"At the age of seven Tristan learned the depth of Valentines true plan and disappeared without a trace. That was before he showed up in Idris three years ago to plead his case to The Clave."

"And that is exactly why he cannot be trusted." Jace spit through gritted teeth.

She gave him a sympathetic look but then continued on. "Although he has had an indecent past, he was very, very young when all of that happened. And he has been proving himself to The Clave ever since. And as I said before, we do not have a choice in the matter."

"Wait. So you're telling me that out of all of the Shadowhunters throughout the world, with some of the finest living right here in this household, they think that this guy is the best fit for this situation?" Maryse nodded once in response. "They don't see the conflict of interest here? They can't see that this is possibly the worst person that they could have chosen. Are they insane?!" I yelled, frustrated with this whole situation. I hated the fact that they felt it their duty to choose who I trained with in the first place. They don't know me. And I know that they still consider me a fragile little girl. Even after all that I have done, I still don't have their respect. "Screw The Clave! I want to be taught by Jace!"

I turned toward him then, hurt creeping into my voice. My eyes began to tear at the thought of him keeping this significant part of his life from me. "And why didn't you tell me about him?" I asked quietly.

"Clary, I'm sorry. I…I –"he fumbled his face suddenly urgent.

"No. I'm not in the mood to talk about this right now." I withdrew my hand and started toward the window. It had gone quiet, the only noise coming from the fanning flames.

"He's hot!" a voice called from the hallway, startling me to the core. It was Isabelle. I turned, shooting an annoyed expression in her direction. She was smiling; dressed head to toe in Shadowhunter gear; looking stealth and deadly. She unraveled her whip expertly, letting it fall to the floor. "Well I'm sorry to say so, but he is. I saw him in Alicante a few years back. He grew up nicely."

"Shut up Isabelle!" Jace growled. "That is not helping!" he continued, taking a step toward her. She quickly raised her hands in defeat.

"Geez, I'm sorry I said anything. I just figured that the conversation needed a lighter subject matter - my bad." And with that she wound the whip up her arm and strolled on to patrol with Alex.

JACE p.o.v.

Clary had stormed out of the library after Isabelle's little interruption. I decided it best to give her some space. I waited for her in her room, which gave me some much needed time to think - some time to digest what just happened.

I couldn't remember the last time I was this…frustrated. Frustrated with the overflowing emotions I felt in this moment and could nothing about. I wasn't used to it. I was used to being in control; especially when it came to Clary's safety and well-being. Clary, my Clary, was going to be trained by Tristan - really? Talk about a cosmic joke. My best and worst childhood friend was on his way here to help guide Clary through the process of becoming what she is destined to become: a savior to our kind. That made me furious beyond comprehension. I was also furious with myself for not telling Clary about Tristan in the first place – she should not have found out like this. And most of all, I'm saddened by the fact that her and I will not be able to share this experience together. I wanted to be the one to hold her hand through her life in every way - including teaching her the history and culture of our people. I wanted it and he was going to get it. And there is absolutely nothing I can do about it. And not to mention that there was a small part of my brain that had taken what Isabelle said and stored it away, repeating itself like a mantra; he's hot, he's hot, he's hot. I stared out her bedroom window frozen in anger, until…

"Jace" she breathed as she approached me from behind, wrapping her arms around my waist. She kissed my back through my shirt. "I'm sorry for getting upset and running off. That didn't help anything. You know you can talk to me if you want to. I won't even have an opinion if you don't want me to. I can just listen."

After a moment I turned to face her, keeping her encircled in my arms. Her hair fell in loose curls around her face; the image toying playfully with my gut. Her eyes were searching mine, kind and understanding. How did I deserve her? What could I have possibly done to afford this gift: her love. I gently seized a stray curl, placing it back behind her ear. "I'm frustrated." I said honestly. "I'm frustrated with so many things, including myself."

She placed her hands on my cheeks, assuring that I was looking and listening. "Jace, I want you to know that I am so sorry for what he did to you. I want to kill him for it. And I want you to know that no matter what I learn from him, no matter how much he can teach me, I can only truly be taught about our world from you. He may teach me from a book, but you and I will experience it together. Heck, we have experienced it together. And I can't wait to experience more." She nudged me playfully. "Nothing can compare to that."

Then she kissed me…ever so gently. I grabbed her hair and pulled her in closer, one hand trailing down her back. I could never be close enough. I could never grasp her fragile frame close enough to mine. I knew that at any minute her lips were part and she would inhale my scent. And when she did, I would go fluid in her arms. Only she could have this effect on me. I brought my hands to her face and drew back, our face inches apart. "I love you, Clary."

She smiled her beautiful smile, grabbing my hand and kissing my palm, eyes coming back to mine. "I love you, too."

I brought her into my arms, cradling her head against my chest. "And just so you know, I'm not hurt by what he did – I'm pissed off. I'd like nothing more than to banish him from this earth. But I can't. And that is also frustrating."

I pictured Tristan and me as young boys, playing in the front yard of my home in Alicante. I remember he always knew exactly how to react to my reactions. When I was mad, he knew how to calm me down. When I was frustrated, he knew what to say to drive me forward. I later learned that it was all an act. He was simply an actor in Valentines elaborate plan to overthrow The Clave. And I fell for it.

Suddenly the doorbell for The Institution rang. Clary drew back and looked at me, her expression anxious.

AN: I love hearing opinions. Let me know what you like/dislike about the story ;). Happy Friday everyone!!