Notes: I don't get caught up in fandoms very often. I really thought that I'd get Malec out of my system with the first fic I wrote. I couldn't have been more wrong…

So I hope you enjoy this next little (I lie, it's really not going to be that little) adventure into my Malec fantasies ;)

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"So it has been decreed, Valentine Morgenstern, that for crimes against your country, your people, and most grievous treason against your King…you are hereby sentenced to a lifetime of imprisonment in the City of Bones, never to see the light of day again…"

The reinforced iron gates clanged shut, the grate of metal on metal ringing out. The edges glowed with the angelic power of the runes that had been engraved, ensuring that there was no escape.

King Robert stood outside the cell, his gaze cold as he appraised his former friend behind the bars.

Black eyes met his own, both horrifying and compelling as they gleamed.

Robert broke their connection and turned on his heels, marching back down the long corridor.

Maniacal laugher followed him, amplified and echoing around the cavern, chilling the soul of all with the misfortune to hear it.

Sixteen years later…

"Alec, c'mon!"

Alec hurried into his leather breeches, pulling the strings tight and tying a hasty knot, trying not to blush too hard as his best friend and adoptive brother danced impatiently at the door.

"I'm coming…hang on."

He slipped his jacket on and grabbed his riding gloves, casting a cursory glance around his room before heading to the door.

"What's the hurry?" He broke into a jog, matching the long strides of the boy next to him.

"All the good horses will be taken!"

Alec shot him a sarcastic glance. "We are royalty. We always get the best horses."

"You're royalty." Jace grinned lopsidedly. "I just pretend."

Alec huffed as Jace showed no signs of slowing down.

"After the hissy fit you threw at the competition three years ago, everybody knows not to take your horse."

"Mmm. I guess you're right."

"I'm always right. So come on, what's so important that you had to drag me out of bed at this ungodly hour?"

Jace exhaled dramatically as they reached the doors of the castle, his eyes twinkling as he waited for Alec.

"Okay, fine! I may be meeting a certain lady beforehand. She may have promised me her favour."

Alec sighed, trying to affect disinterest.

"A new one?"

"Yup." Jace clapped him on the shoulder as they made their way toward the stables.

"Her name is Lydia. Lord Branwell's daughter."

Alec knew who he was talking about. He'd seen her at several balls, and knew that her father owned a considerable amount of land in Idris, just south of Alicante. She'd be a perfect match for Jace. If it worked out, his friend would be set for life, with a pretty wife, his own title and enough gold to satisfy his every need and whim. But the thought made Alec nothing but cold inside.

He nodded along as Jace waxed poetic about Lydia's beauty, trying to tune him out whilst being a good friend at the same time.

He suddenly wasn't feeling in the mood for this joust, but he squared his shoulders and went to prepare his horse.

The Annual Alicante Joust was a big event. There were several other smaller competitions throughout the year, but most knights saw those as practice, leading up to the main event.

He and Jace weren't knights of course, as members of the royal family they didn't need to be – and in any case, at seventeen they weren't of age to join. Alec suspected that Jace might very well join their ranks after his next birthday, but knew that he couldn't do the same, however enticing that prospect might be.

He'd trained with Jace since they were old enough to hold up a practice sword. They were more than friends when they fought together; they were a team. They knew each other's movements and minds so well that it was almost telepathic, the way they anticipated each other's actions. He wanted nothing more than to be free to sign up with Jace, to work their way through the ranks, to live a life of battling, protecting, travelling and freedom.

But that was impossible for Alec, as the Crown Prince of Alicante.

While Jace was free to choose the path of his life, Alec's had been set out for him since the day he'd been born.

He knew that he should be grateful; he'd been born into riches and plenty, never wanting for anything – materially, at least.

He would never complain, never…but he couldn't help but feel a little sad whenever Jace spoke of his late parents. His mother had died in childbirth, and his father in a tragic house fire when he'd been only ten years old, after which he'd been adopted by Alec's parents. As unusual as it was for a King and Queen to adopt, especially when they had children of their own, their parents had been very close.

No, Alec would never complain…but he couldn't help but feel jealous of the love Jace had been given in his early life. It was in those moments that he hated himself the most.

Jealous…over his best friend's tragedy…

It wasn't that his own parents were cruel. They were kind and just rulers. It was only that they seemed not to find any reason for treating their children in any way different to their subjects. They were kind, and they were fair…but they were also objective, distant and formal.

The first time Alec had felt like he had a family was when Jace had come to live with them. He'd been a breath of fresh air – a beam of golden sunlight shining into their lives.

They'd always been good friends, but this was different. Jace became his brother…and so much more.

Alec didn't know when it had started.

He couldn't put his finger on the exact moment he'd begun to look at Jace differently.

All he knew was that the first time Jace had talked about liking a girl, it had felt like all the air had been snatched from his lungs. The room was too hot and too cold at the same time…he'd felt a thudding pain in his head and a twisting in his stomach.

It had been like losing something he hadn't even known he'd had…but as soon as it was gone, its absence felt like a gaping wound.

He'd locked himself in his room for two days after that, refusing to see or speak to anyone. He'd needed time, to think, to sort out his own head. He'd come to many conclusions during that time, looked at his reflection with a cold eye, and made some decisions.

Then he'd resumed his life.

But as much as things stayed the same, everything had changed. He knew things now. Things about himself that he could never admit to, never speak of, never act on.

He ignored it, as best he could. But there were still moments when he was caught unawares, and there was nothing he could do about that.

Maybe it would be best, he thought darkly. If Jace did become a knight, he would be free of the daily torture it was to be around him. It would be torture too, to not be around him…but perhaps it might be the lesser of two evils.

His shook his thoughts away as they entered the stables, men bustling around despite the early hour. He parted from Jace as they went to prepare their horses; they had servants capable of doing so of course, but it was a superstition among nobles that for good luck during the Joust, one should prepare one's own horse.

Alec didn't mind this; in fact he prepared his own horse as often was he was able. He liked the methodical nature of the task, how brushing down and saddling his steed calmed his mind. As the crown prince he didn't have a lot of menial tasks to attend to, and he liked how the simple-nature of this one levelled out his status for a while. He could work alongside a stableboy and feel not out of place.

"Alec!"

Jace's voice startled out of the reverie he'd fallen into.

"Hmm?"

Jace's golden was stuck over the fence that divided the stalls of their horses, an impish grin lighting his face.

"Um, I was wondering…if maybe you'd have time to…"

Alec sighed.

"Go and see your woman, Jace. I'll get him ready." He motioned toward the majestic stallion in Jace's stall.

"She's not my woman…well, not yet anyway." Jace winked.

"Just be careful, okay!" Alec called after him. "Don't do anything that'd piss her family off…!"

But Jace was gone, bounding out into the morning sunshine, looking for all the world a young, blonde Adonis.

Alec's heart twisted as he disappeared and he ducked into the stall next to him, trying to rid his mind of painful thoughts.

He'd already finished brushing down his own steed, making sure that his coat shone like black steel. Their horses were identical, twins from head to toe, except for their colours. They'd been given to them at their Voyance Ceremony when they'd been twelve years old, a gift from the King. Though all the horses in the Royal Stable were technically ownerless – if they were needed, they were ridden – Alec and Jace had both been drawn to the pair of wild eyed colts that King Robert had bought for a pretty penny. People often joked that the horses were personifications of their bond; white and black to match Jace's blonde head and Alec's dark one, yin and yang to match the way they complemented each other perfectly.

Alec tried not to think about that too often, though.

If only Jace would see how good they were together…if only Alec weren't so scared of his own feelings…if only it weren't a sin…in the eyes of the law, at least.

Alec knew that what he felt wasn't wrong. He wasn't ashamed of himself, he would just…rather he didn't feel the things that he felt.

It would be so much easier.

It wasn't uncommon for men to take other men as lovers, or women to take other women. It happened, but when it did, it wasn't spoken of. It was something that common people engaged in, not the societal elite. It happened, but it was forbidden for such a relationship to progress into anything official. Men married women, that was that. He'd heard tales of some men who eschewed the institution of marriage, opting either to live alone, or with their male lovers. But when that happened, the couple were pretty much shunned from all society, elite or common. Some others chose to simply not marry, to live alone. But Alec knew that he would have to marry. He dreaded his eighteenth birthday, for that was when his parents would begin choosing his bride. He would fulfil his duties, he knew that. He just hoped beyond anything else that she would not expect him to love her.

He got lost in his thoughts again, brushing down the Stallion before him, polishing their gear, slowly saddling the two horses.

He was just adjusting the bridle on his own steed when a figure strode past his stall, catching his attention for some reason, over all the other activity in the stables. He poked his head out into the walkway, trying to discern why the boy looked so familiar yet strange.

He stopped at a stall a little ways down, darting a glance back towards the door before fiddling with the bolt.

Alec gasped, hastening toward the stall the boy had gone into, slipping inside before he managed to close it.

"Izzy."

He chided, grabbing his sister by the arm.

"What are you doing? And what on earth are you wearing?!"

She pulled out of his grip, her dark eyes narrowing as she placed her hands on her hips.

"Shhh! Obviously I'm under cover here!" She gestured to her clothing.

Alec gaped, scandalized, taking in the leather breeches that were so similar to his own, outlining the shape of her slender legs and hips, up to the white shirt that billowed out, obscuring her feminine form. She'd even hidden her hair, he could see the end of a braid poking out from the cap tucked it under.

"This isn't going to work!" He protested, weakly. "I could tell it was you!"

She rolled her eyes.

"Well once I'm on a horse, it'll be fine."

She turned toward the Palomino mare, watching them with gentle brown eyes, patting her neck affectionately.

"Missy here, and I have been training for months and nobody ever suspected."

Alec sighed, long-suffering.

"That's different." He ignored the fact that his sister had been dressing up in men's clothing for months and none of them had noticed. He'd have to start keeping a closer eye on her, though he'd been turning a blind eye since she began sneaking out to meet up with boys. What he didn't know wouldn't hurt him. Though in this case…

"Izzy, the Joust is dangerous. You'll get hurt – "

She glared at him.

"You haven't seen me training, Alec. I'm not half bad you know. Just because I'm a girl -"

"I don't doubt that you're good!" He backtracked. "But if mother and father catch you, I - "

"Then it's my fault!" She interrupted. "You try and take on too much, Alec. You need to let go sometimes." She picked up a brush and began rubbing smooth circles over Missy's flank.

"I know you care, and I'm grateful for that…but you need to stop trying to take the blame for what Jace and I do. Especially today."

She raised an eyebrow, sounding to Alec as though she was hinting at something specific.

"What do you mean, what's Jace doing?"

She laughed. "See? You can't help but try and control everything. In any case, Lydia will sort him out. I don't for the life of me know why he thought it was a good idea to try and court that one."

"What's wrong with Lydia?" Alec crossed his arms, defensive and concerned.

Izzy shot him an indecipherable glance.

"She's way too smart for him, that's what."

"Is that all?" He was confused by her tone.

"Stop worrying, big brother! Now, just pretend you didn't see me here, and everything will be fine."

She pushed him gently out of the stall.

He closed his eyes momentarily, before ducking back into his horse's stall. His siblings would be the death of him.

The midsummer sun shone brightly overhead but a light breeze kept Alec from being too uncomfortable in his heavy gear. He swung his arms, stretching his muscles.

He'd completed one heat already, and sailed through to the next round. He was confident in his ability to place among the top ten, he spent most of his time training with Jace, training alone or with decorated knights in his father's army. He'd been taught well, and he'd honed his skills.

But sometimes he did wonder whether his title helped him along. There was no favouring from the King towards him or Jace, everybody knew that. But he was a Prince, there was no denying that fact. Sometimes he could tell when a man held back, allowing him to sail through. It was frustrating, but he enjoyed the sport. There was nothing he could do about it.

He cast an eye round, over the knights attending to their horses, the arena around which civilians were gathered, the stands upon which his parents sat among various lords and ladies.

He spotted Lydia sitting beside her father, looking a vision in a gown of pale blue that he knew would complement her eyes. He didn't know her well, but he could see what Isabelle had meant as she noted the rigidity of her posture, her head held high, the bored, almost disdainful expression he'd come to expect from the Elite. He didn't doubt that she'd be a handful for Jace.

Speaking of, Alec noticed his brother taking his jacket off, letting his shirt billow out in the breeze. It hung off his lean, muscular frame and Alec had to look away quickly before he noticed too much. He did however, catch the delicate white handkerchief emblazoned with blue lace that was would into his horse's bridle.

He noticed Isabelle glaring at Jace from a distance away, her arms folded as she leant against her horse. He rolled his eyes. She may chastise him for caring too much, but she didn't want to see him hurt either.

Still, it was common practice for participants in the Joust to take favours from ladies. He himself had accepted a similar token from his friend, Lady Aline, of the Penhallow family.

She didn't visit often, but usually stayed with them during the summer. They'd grown close a few years back, when Izzy and Jace had begun spending more of their time in the pursuit of romance. Aline, like him, preferred to opt out of such frivolities.

Alec's attention was dragged back to arena as an aging nobleman who was overseeing this year's competition stepped onto a podium at one end of the field, close to where the nobles sat shaded from the sun.

"The next heat shall comprise of…His Royal Highness Alexander Lightwood, and the Honourable Lord Jonathon Herondale!"

Alec refrained from rolling his eyes at their titles. He understood that it was perhaps unavoidable in everyday life, but in a competition such as this, he was no better than the other men. He saw Jace swing up onto his stallion, grinning as he bowing to the cheering crowd.

Alec suppressed a smile. Jace deserved it; the title, the attention. He'd inherited his Lordship after the untimely death of his father. Alec was glad that he could enjoy the benefits that came with it, though they could never make up for the means by which it was bestowed.

He mounted his horse with the same practiced ease, urging him toward the gate. He accepted his lance with murmured thanks, shaking the dark hair out of his eyes as he prepared for the round.

They paraded once around the arena, acknowledging the ladies in the audience and bowing to the King and Queen.

Alec let a small grin play across his face as he and Jace took their places at either end of the arena.

His earlier mood was forgotten, whisked away in the soothing breeze and coiled energy in his muscles. This was what he lived for. This was the only time he would let himself go, that he could spend his energy purely toward enjoying himself.

He readied his lance, waiting for the horn, entirely focused on his brother, holding himself in the same position. They'd made a bet weeks before; and it wasn't about money, of course, they both had more than they needed. This was about pride…about challenging the other…about bragging rights, and Alec really didn't want to give Jace more reason to brag.

The horn sounded…and they were off.

Alec let the reins fall slack; he'd trained long enough that his horse knew the drill as well as he did. They moved together, fluidly, flawlessly. They surged forward, Alec crouching low in the saddle, his grip on his lance tight and even. The wind whipped through his helmet, drowning out all other noise.

Jace was coming closer and closer…

SMACK.

The blunt tip of Jace's lance hit him squarely in the chest and he almost forgot to grasp the reins as his own crashed into Jace.

He moved instinctively, the muscles in the thighs and in arm holding the reins tightening while he relaxed, letting the impact push him back but keeping his position on his horse.

It worked best like that – if you fought the attack then you would mostly likely lose your balance, your focus having been jarred.

He managed to stay on his horse, exhaling a breath as he crouched low again, cantering around to see what had become of Jace.

He laughed as he realised that his brother has employed the same technique – perhaps they'd trained together too much.

He turned to the podium to await instruction…and froze.

He hadn't noticed that something had seemed off, but now that he took in the scene before him, the lack of noise

Jousts were noisy occasions. As royalty, he and Jace only had to enter the arena for the crowd to roar. He hadn't noticed the moment it had ceased, having been too caught up the sport. But silence reigned now, and it was eerie.

Every face in the audience and among the milling knights was turned toward the King, who had stood from his perch, with a messenger beside him. Even from so far away it was clear to see that his face was thunder – Alec's heart clenched. What had happened?

His father's gray eyes glared forward then he turned, strode off the podium and back towards the castle. A quick gesture and six knights strode with him, along with his personal Guard and the messenger hurrying behind.

Alec glanced toward Jace, who looked as confused as he felt.

Then he heard it, the silence broken with dissonant whispers. They came from those stood closest to the podium, and spread until Alec was surrounded with little snatches of sound, all speaking the same thing.

"The Mortal Sword…taken…demons…threat…war…"

So I didn't realize how unintentionally erotic it is to describe a jousting scene...I swear, this was supposed to sound innocent :') of course, it could sound completely innocent and it's just my mind, splashing about in the gutter. Whichever way you read it, I hope you enjoyed this first chapter! I have never jousted before, surprisingly...so my description could be completely wrong but hey...my only point of reference is having watched A Knights Tale about five years ago :')

Much, much more drama is to come, and from what I have planned right now, it's going to be a long one! I hope to update twice a week but to start with it may be once as I write ahead.