This was a fun chapter to write.

A note: I added a few paragraphs to last chapter because I realized there was a bit of a plot hole concerning runes and glamouring them, and it bothered me enough to actually fix it.

Again, a thank you to the lovely reviewers!

Chapter Two

Alec wondered at what point he should stop waiting up for Izzy. She said she would be going out tonight –not to study, but with a friend. The thought shouldn't have worried him. He kept trying to tell himself that he was being overly cautious. It was good that Isabelle was making friends and enjoying herself. She should, and after all their struggles, they deserved it.

It was just late. Alec checked his cellphone to look at the time. It read 2:37 am. Alec had sent Max to bed more than three hours ago, and texted Izzy. There hadn't been a response. Izzy lived her life less carefully than Alec did. She always said that it was necessary to be wary and look out for Circle members, but not at every moment of the day.

No matter how Alec's instance might annoy her, she always called or texted back.

Alec was also worried because last week Isabelle had come home and mentioned that a girl had asked about her rune. He had hounded her for any and all details.

"She said her name was Clary. I met her at the coffee shop I told you about—" Izzy cut herself off and grinned. Her eyes had the teasing glint they always did when she was about to start poking at him about his love life.

"Drop it. I'm not getting a boyfriend. We've been over this," Alec said. "Tell me about this Clary."

"Well, she's a couple of inches taller than me, she has fiery red hair, it's kind of curly too. Muy bonita. Green eyes, long legs. Her smile is the cutest I've ever seen, and she has great boobs," Izzy said. She paused and met his gaze, unrepentant. At seeing Alec's horrified expression, she laughed.

"Izzy."

"All right! Fine. Her name is Clary Fray. She noticed the rune and called it a 'tattoo,' then she said it looked cool. She didn't have any runes on her. I was at a gay coffee shop, Alec. She was probably hitting on me." Isabelle inspected her nails. She seemed to be trying too hard to be casual.

"Okay, now tell me what you really think," said Alec.

"I think I'm going to hang out with her sometime, and try to see if I can find out anything else," she said. "But odds are, she's just a curious mundane."

"You don't sound too convinced."

Isabelle hesitated. "She looked at it as if she knew what it meant. But she didn't say anything."

Alec tapped his index finger on his knee and leaned back. "Whatever you decide to do, just… be careful."

Isabelle had stood up and walked over to him. She leaned into him and wrapped her arms around him. He returned the hug and felt her bury her face into his shoulder. She turned her head and pressed a kiss to his cheek before she pulled away. "I will."

If Isabelle was out with this Clary Fray –and Alec suspected that she was—this was certainly not careful. Alec had texted his sister four times without a response. He didn't know what more he could do except wait for her to get home.

Well. There was one thing he could do.

His eyes drifted to his dresser. It was where he kept his parents' steles.

There were days he wanted to get rid of them. So that he and his siblings could live completely as mundanes. But he kept them because part of him insisted that he would need the steles one day, and that getting rid of the only things that linked him to his parents and his heritage would be like losing himself.

There were other days still that he wanted to Mark himself all over his arms so that his identity as a Shadowhunter would be unmistakable. A silent challenge to any Circle members that might be onto them.

Today was one of the latter days. His fingers itched for a stele. He remembered how it felt to be Marked; Isabelle had drawn the angelic power rune on him a few years ago. It had taken him a while to agree to it, but Izzy just didn't let it go. Finally he had pushed up his sleeve and let her draw the rune. It had burned at first. But with it came a burst of power.

"How do you feel?" Max had asked.

"Like a Shadowhunter," he'd replied.

Alec walked to his dresser and opened a drawer, digging around for the steles. His hand felt cold metal. He closed his fingers around one of them and brought it out. This one was his father's. Bronze and carved with different runes. He studied them as though one of the runes would be the one he needed. He wished that he could just tell the stele what he needed, and that it would press against his skin and move of its own accord in the shape of a tracking rune.

He closed his eyes and tried to remember. Ten years ago, before they'd left the Clave, he had used flash cards to memorize the runes. They had left the flash cards in the New York Institute, thinking there would be no use for them.

He just needed to remember the tracking rune. The hand that held the stele was trembling. He couldn't mess this up. He went over all the ones he could recall in his head. Angelic power. Easy. Nourishment. The iratze. Clairvoyance. Deflect.

Tracking.

He hoped to the Angel that it was the right one.

He went to Isabelle's room and took one of her favorite necklaces. She'd worn it yesterday. Hopefully her presence would be strong enough to lead him to her. Without a parabatai, the rune would be weak but Alec had to try. He still hadn't drawn it. There would be no coming back from this.

He gripped the stele tightly and drew it over his other wrist. It burned and Alec gasped. It hurt more than the angelic rune had, but he closed his eyes and concentrated on the necklace and on finding his sister. The rune was leaving him only with the faintest impression of where Izzy was.

Alec opened his eyes and left her room to wake Max up.

His younger brother blinked up at him with bleary hazel eyes. "¿Qué?"

"It's past three in the morning and Izzy still isn't home," Alec said. "I'm going to get her. Do you want to come or can you stay by yourself for a few hours?"

"'m fine, I'll just be here sleeping," he said, closing his eyes again and turning away.

"I'll text you if anything happens. You know what to do, right?"

"Run, meet you at the nearest subway station. Worst case scenario, I go to the New York Institute," Max said. He sounded half asleep, but they'd gone through this plan so many times that his kid brother could recite this in his sleep.

Alec stroked Max's hair and leaned over to kiss his forehead. "Good. I'll see you soon."

Magnus usually let Clary have free reign. She was a good girl and knew not to get into too much trouble. He had to admit, however, that he was currently worried out of his mind. Clary had never been out this late before, and he couldn't help the nagging fear that Valentine had found her.

She had learned to glamour her runes. Runes tended to fade on Shadowhunters after a long time of not using them, but Clary used them. Clary wanted to use them even without demons running around the streets. She wanted to be prepared if she ever saw a Circle member. After twelve years, she still wanted to find her mother.

But she also needed to be hidden. So she created a rune that would make them vanish on her skin. Magnus knew they could still be activated and could still pulse with energy and power, but they couldn't be seen. It was handy and essential for her, and was a large reason that—as far as Magnus knew—neither the Clave nor the Circle was aware of her.

Just as Magnus was about to rush to Clary's room to get her sketchbook or something equally as important to her so that he could track her, the buzzer rang.

Clary never used the buzzer. She had a key.

It was four in the morning. Magnus hadn't set up any appointments today at this hour. He walked over and pressed the button. "Who is this?"

"My name is Alec. Does Clary Fray live here? I found her at a club and she said she lived here."

"Yes, but I'm afraid Clary Fray is very gay, so if you would be so kind as to help her up the stairs and then leave," Magnus said, and let him in.

A few minutes and there was a knock at his door. When he opened it, he found Clary holding on to a man's arm to steady herself. Her hair was damp with sweat. Her mascara clumped and the rest of her makeup smudged.

"Oh my God," Magnus breathed, and threw his arms around Clary.

She stumbled back a step and rested her head on his chest. "I'm okay, Mags."

Magnus pulled away from the hug to give her a glare. "Are you drunk?"

Clary held up her right hand with her thumb and pointer finger close together. "Little bit."

There was an entire lecture that he opened his mouth to begin, but he closed it and sighed. "Get a drink of water and go to bed. We'll talk about this later."

Clary nodded and brushed past him. He heard her giggle and coo at Chairman Meow. He looked at the man who had brought Clary home. He was taller than Magnus, with messy dark hair and honest hazel eyes. He looked a little embarrassed.

Magnus hoped that his face didn't look as enamored as he felt.

"I didn't mean to make it seem—I never hit on her, I didn't—I mean, I'm not—" Alec said, looking horrified. Magnus had seen that expression a thousand different times on a thousand different faces. He decided not to press.

"Thank you for bringing her home," he said, smiling. "Sorry to give you trouble. She's a good kid most of the time."

"Are you her…?" Alec trailed off, confused.

"Guardian, adoptive parent, babysitter. Take your pick," Magnus said. He stretched out his hand. "Magnus Bane."

He saw a flash of recognition in Alec's eyes. He seemed to hesitate before giving Magnus his hand. Alec's sleeve rode up and Magnus saw the strokes of an angelic rune on the inside of his arm. He tried not to stare at it as they shook hands.

When he met Alec's gaze again, he knew that his reaction had not been unnoticed. There was a fear in there, but also curiosity, and strangely enough, trust.

"Alec Lightwood."

The surname came out as though he was not used to saying it, but it was hard with an affirmation of who he truly was.

A Shadowhunter.

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