Author's Note: So after many, many conversations and a month later, I have this one-shot gift for the lovely ddpjclaf. You rock my socks lady!

Disclaimer: I don't own the Mortal Instruments. I'm just playing with Jace and Clary.

Clary knew the minute that she sliced her Angel blade through the chest of the demon she was fighting off that she would have to shower for hours just to remove the stench of ichor from her skin and hair. It wasn't bad enough that she was covered in mud and sweat. Now she had demon blood to top it off.

The only thing that made it better was the fact that she wasn't alone in her situation. Jace, who was the only other person with her, had also managed to cover his body in mud and ichor—but Clary was certain that he didn't break a sweat. It was another talent of his.

She cursed quietly under her breath as she hastily wiped off the ichor from her blade onto her pants, and returned it to her belt. There was no sign of any more demons in the muddy field they were standing in, so Clary let her stance relax.

Jace had apparently assumed the same of their situation, and let his expression change from one of sheer determination, back to the familiar sly and confident one she knew so well.

When the sky decided to open up and dump rain on them, Jace laughed loudly. "If that isn't a sign, then I don't know what is."

"And what specifically is that sign?" Clary couldn't help but ask.

"I think it's pretty obvious. Even the heavens think we're filthy and need showers."

"Showers?"

"Yes," Jace said and smirked. "You know, standing in a bath tub, letting hot water and soap mix on your body. It's a form of cleansing..."

"I know what a shower is Jace." Clary rolled her eyes.

"Then why did you ask?" He tilted his head to the side, almost in confusion himself.

"I was referring to your word choice, showers," she emphasized the plural.

"Well, we both need one. I need a shower, you need a shower. Thus, showers," he imitated the way she said the word.

Clary shook her head; some of her muddy hair whipped her in the face, splattering mud into her mouth. She gagged on it a little bit and spat out as much as she could onto the ground. "Are you trying to play dumb?" she finally said.

Jace only smirked at her and grabbed her hand. They walked back to the Institute in silence.

***

"Hello? Anyone home?" Jace called out for the third time. His voice echoed through the hallway, emphasizing how alone they were. They were both standing on the greeting mat, dripping muddy water onto the floor. Clary knew Maryse would throw a fit if she saw how much mess they created—and they hadn't even walked down the hall yet.

Deciding that the best solution was to remove her boots and carry them to the laundry room, Clary quickly untied her boots and headed down the hall. She could hear the soft footsteps of Jace following her. When they reached the laundry room, Clary dumped her boots in the sink, and made a promise to herself to clean them up later. It was getting close to midnight and she really didn't want to bother with the mess now.

When she turned around to leave the room, she was surprised to find Jace completely undressed, except for his black boxer briefs. He was still filthy, without his clothes on. She raised one eyebrow at him, but he studiously ignored it and walked out of the room. Clary copied him, carefully peeling off all her hunting clothes and gear, letting her weapons clunk onto the floor by the sink. When she had her undershirt taken off, she tossed all her clothes into the washing machine with Jace's and turned it on. She ignored the tinge of annoyance that Jace didn't even bother turning on the water for her, and walked back to her bedroom.

She was in her own personal shower moments later, fighting with the tap to turn on the hot water. Goosebumps erupted on her skin as the cold water suddenly rushed down on her naked frame. A loud shriek of surprised escaped her lips. Her teeth chattered in her mouth in response.

A hand shot out beside her, yanking the hot water on. Clary turned around to find a very naked, very mud-covered Jace standing behind her. His gear hadn't managed to keep the mud from his covered skin. In that respect they were perfectly matched.

The majority of the spray was on her body, and Clary had to wipe a hand over her face to stop the mud from running in her eyes. When she looked at Jace again, he had the bar of soap between his hands, rubbing it to create lather. She moved aside so he could share part of the water.

"Something wrong with your shower?"

"I like this one better," he replied. Instead of moving under the water to clean his own body, Jace stayed where he was, moving his hands onto her sides. He slowly rubbed circles on her skin, effectively cleaning the area. When he was finished with her sides, he moved to her back, rubbing the bar of soap across it. Jace seemed to be following some sort of deliberate pattern, ignoring very intimate parts of her body, as he moved onto her legs next. Being the cleanest part, he was done her legs the fastest, standing back up to his full height. Clary turned around, letting him continue with her chest and stomach.

She had a suspicion that Jace was up to something, as he continued cleaning her off, moving on from soap to shampoo. Instead of saying anything, Clary let him clean out her hair. His fingers worked miracles on her tangles, effectively removing them without any pain. When she stood right under the spray again, she could feel his hands moving softly over her face, letting the shampoo mixed with the water to help remove the mud.

"Jace," she said when she stepped forward to wipe the water out of her eyes, "you've missed a few important spots."

He gave her his best mischievous smile. "Haven't you heard of saving the best for last?"

Clary knew that he face was heating up, and not from the hot water spraying down on her partially cleaned body. "Yes, but this is just intolerable."

"The mud? I know. It isn't that pleasant." He reached for the bar of soap again, but Clary snagged it from his hand before his fingers closed over it. "Hey!" he protested. "I was going to use that."

Clary smirked at him. "Why don't you let me do the honours?"

"Switch positions?" he asked.

Clary nodded her head and moved out of the way so Jace could be completely under the water. As soon as his hair was dripping wet he shook his head, sending mud flying in all directions in the shower. Clary couldn't help but squeal, and hit him lightly on the chest. "You are so immature!"

"And you wouldn't have it any other way," he responded.

Instead of coming up with a clever retort, Clary kissed him. Jace seemed humoured by her move, breaking off to laugh. "What?" Clary asked.

"You really don't have anything smart to say back?"

"Isn't that your job?"

This time Jace was silent.

Clary took advantage of the soap in her hand, rubbing it together on her hands, and then put it on the ledge. She decided to start simple with Jace, and then slowly move to more sensitive areas. She could be just as much of a tease if she wanted to.

The worst of the mud on Jace was his back and shoulders, so Clary made sure to thoroughly clean them. Using small circular motions, she managed to massage his tight muscles and clean the skin thoroughly. The only problem was that his hair was still coated with mud, and it was dripping constantly.

It seemed too simple when Jace had done it, but she found her height restriction was getting in the way. "Jace, either you need to kneel down, or I'm going to have to chop off your legs," she joked when she couldn't reach his hair properly.

Jace grinned and knelt down in the tub. He started to pepper kisses on her stomach, causing slight shudders to ripple through her body. If he kept going she would forget what she was supposed to be doing.

Grabbing the shampoo, Clary poured a considerate amount on his scalp and massaged it into his hair until there were loads of suds. Jace seemed to still his kisses as she ran her fingers through his long curls, removing all the mud.

He stood back up to his full height to rinse the shampoo out. Clary couldn't understand how such a simple procedure seemed to be so hot to watch. Her eyes were glued to his upper torso and arms, watching the muscles move as he ran his fingers through his hair. She couldn't help herself as she reached out and ran her hands down his chest. He was irresistible.

Clary could feel the rumble of his chest, more than she could hear the deep chuckle that escaped his lips. "You just can't keep your hands of me. I know I am a sex god, after all."

Instead of kissing him, Clary boldly grabbed hold of his manhood, getting exactly to her point. She stoked him once, roughly. She took pride in how fast his smile fell from his lips at the realisation of what she was doing. It didn't hurt that the look on his face turned her on. His eyes were burning into hers, urging her to continue. "You're right," she said huskily. "I can't keep my hands off you. Maybe I should stop." She released him and turned around, taking a step out of the shower.

What she didn't expect was how fast he would be to recover. He grabbed her by the wrist and spun her around, having her chest pushed flush against the wall under the water. She could feel Jace's erection pushing against her back as he leaned into her. "There is no way you are going to get away with that one Fray."

Clary loved it when he used her last name. It was rare when he said it and turned her on more. She pretended to try and escape, wiggling her body, knowing the view Jace had.

When he spoke again, his mouth was right against her ear. "Do you know how irresistible you are right now?"

Clary arched her back, forcing her butt to push back more into Jace. She smiled when she heard him moan. "I can guess," she spoke over her shoulder.

Jace's hands held her hips in a tight grip. She could feel them flexing slightly as she moved her lower body, purposely rubbing against him. A low moan came from him, followed by an even tighter hold on her hips. One of his hands moved downwards, grazing her ass cheek, following its soft curve to the place between her legs.

It was Clary's turn to moan in pleasure as Jace fingered her lightly. But his hand moved away quickly, this time creating a trail up her stomach and onto her right breast. His other hand traced a similar trail, until he was cupping both of her breasts. His fingers moved expertly as he fingered her nipples. They hardened in his calloused hands, bringing more heat to her core.

Clary wanted more, so she turned around slowly, letting Jace place his hands back on her chest as she came to face him. They had done this enough times for Jace to know what she wanted. His lips came down onto hers, his teeth hungrily nipping and pulling on her lower lip.

She opened her mouth to his quickly, inviting his tongue to play with hers. There was a battle for dominance between the two of them, both unrelenting and unwilling to give in to the other.

Even their bodies were trying to overpower the other. While Jace roughly ground into Clary, she wrapped her right leg around his hip, pressing her body into his. They were both panting as they broke off the kiss.

The stream of water muffled their quick breaths, also causing Clary to blink rapidly when she opened her eyes. She watched Jace's chest rise and fall in a motion much like she could feel her own doing. Inspired by the moment, Clary hooked her other leg around Jace's hip and put her arms on his shoulders, hoisting herself up.

Jace wrapped his arms around her back, supporting her weight. He took her mouth again with his; kissing her with such passion that Clary couldn't stop herself from moaning loudly. He moved forward then, bringing them both under the spray of the shower, until Clary could feel the moist wall of the shower on her back. Using her position to help him, Jace moved one hand onto her hip, and used his other to position himself at her entrance. He moved inside her quickly, and then put his newly freed hand onto her bare hip. Jace wasn't hesitant to start rocking inside her and Clary was glad of it.

She revelled in the feeling of Jace being in her, his hands holding her hips firmly, and the sounds of elation he made. Clary was taller than him for once in this position, and bent her head down to kiss him. She couldn't help but twine her fingers into his soaked curls, fisting them and pulling on them as Jace set a steady rocking motion in her.

The constant showering of water had been a monotonous noise and sensation before, but now, as it cooled down significantly, Clary noticed it. Pulling one of her hands out of Jace's hair, she reached behind her and quickly pushed the tab in, effectively cutting off the supply of water. When she fisted her hand back into Jace's hair, he kissed her again, a silent motion of gratitude. As warm as they were in the midst of passion, the cold water had taken its toll enough to bring goosebumps on both of their skin.

Now, without the continuous rush of water in her ears, Clary could properly hear the groans and panting sounds coming from Jace as he held her against the wall. As he ground their hips together still, Clary couldn't help but think of how strenuous it must be for him to hold her up, even if she was very light and he was plenty strong enough. His movements were slowing down, fatigue surely affecting his stride after so long.

"Jace," Clary whispered in his ear, "put me down, I want to change positions."

It was only for a moment, as Clay was put down on her own two feet again, that Jace was pulled out of her. She turned around and bent over, putting her hands out in front of her against the wall of the shower. Jace used his knees to spread her legs apart before he entered her once again, continuing with a much faster rhythm than before.

It was amazing, the difference positioning made on Jace's movements. Without her weight to deal with, Jace was able to push even further into her, and faster than before. His fingers roamed all over her stomach and chest, unable to settle on any specific spot. But Clary didn't mind, it helped drive her closer to her climax, with his hot hands constantly somewhere new.

She arched her back more as the beginnings of her climax hit her. Clary could feel her muscles contracting around Jace, helping him reach the same state of euphoria she was riding out. His thrusts stopped and she knew he had reached his peek too.

It took a few brief moments before Clary caught her breath and was able to speak again. "I think I'm going to need another shower."

Jace had pulled out of her and was drawing the curtain back. "We may have to wait until the hot water tank fills again."

"That will take too long," Clary objected.

Jace shrugged his shoulders and reached for a towel. He ran it quickly over his hair before tying it around his waist. Clary climbed out of the shower and pulled a towel around her shoulders. Holding her towel around her, she walked over to Jace. She wrapped her arms around his torso with the towel, creating a blanket effect around them. Jace kissed her once, then twice, lazily. As much as she wanted a shower, and possibly a second round, she couldn't ignore the tugging of drowsiness on her body. She had woken up before the sun to go hunting with Jace all day, and hadn't had a good night's sleep all week. The adrenaline from fighting had finally worn off, leaving her exhausted and yawning. "Maybe we can shower in the morning," she suggested. "There will be plenty of hot water then."

Jace winked at her. "Sure thing Fray."