Fighting against the odds

It was approaching a twenty four hour time frame in which Magnus hadn't heard a word from Alexander.

Pacing from one corner of his living room to the other probably wasn't one of the most productive or even most creative things he had ever done in his long long life, but it seemed to be the only thing he was capable of doing without making something explode.

Yes, the poor lamp from France... well, he guessed he could always replace the thing.

One hand wrapped around his middle, another tapping his chin, Magnus tried to will himself to find a plausible reason on why he hadn't been contacted yet by the Lightwoods.

He agreed to stay put until the gang made sure that Magnus' presence in the Institute wouldn't warrant him an immediate death sentence, but that was on the condition that he would get updated daily – if not by Alexander himself (considering his rather complicated and highly inconvenient situation with his mobile phone), then at least by his fiery but undeniably beautiful sister, Isabelle. But here he was, nearly a day after their last contact, sun below the horizon, and there was still no word coming from them – not a beep not a sound.

Clearly the only explanation he could come up with was that something must have happened back at the Institute to prevent them from making contact with Magnus, and taking into account their present situation, the likelihood of something having gone wrong was pretty high.

And Magnus would never be able to forgive himself if, in a crucial time, when his assistance was truly needed, he was not present only because he was saving his own ass... an old thing, really, that he wasn't hundred percent sure was worth saving, at least, not at the expense of others.

Which put him to his most recent dilemma – how much longer was he willing to wait in the dark until he decided to march head first in the Institute, consequences be damned. He sighed. He might be the High Warlock of Brooklyn, but his patience clearly wasn't thick enough for this. He'd told Simon as much. He could only hope the vampire fledgling was aware of it, assuming he was still in on the plan. Well, the last time Magnus heard, he was, but... things could change rapidly, in some rather unpredictable ways over the course of twenty four hours, so who knew if Simon was even anywhere near Alexander...

His shoulders slumped a little, head shaking at himself. He knew he was being ridiculous. Ragnor would be having a laugh if he could see him now, but he just couldn't help thinking that something was about to go horribly wrong and he was going to miss it before he could even try to stop it from happening.

With a sudden motion, he spun around his axis, white sparks of magic flickering from his fingers, only to summon a mobile phone into his waiting hand. He unlocked the screen, checked the messages...and, to his rapidly growing frustration, found none yet unread. Same with the missing calls, the last being from Alexander over twenty three hours and thirty two minutes ago.

It wasn't the phone's fault, exactly, but Magnus still swung the device to the couch on the far side of the room, not even bothering to check if it was still intact from his reckless actions.

Phones wouldn't help him. So what was he supposed to do to get in contact with people? He supposed it was time to make some use of the old tricks.

Good, reliable warlock tracking.

Abandoning the living room, Magnus took a few purposeful steps towards his bedroom, where he hoped he would manage to find something that belonged to the Shadowhunter. Admittedly, Alec wasn't one to just leave his stuff behind – even on the occasions when he had stayed over at Magnus' he never brought much, and he took whatever he did bring back to the Institute with him.

With a flick of the wrist he had all the drawers in the room open, ready to start his search. It was rather baffling how difficult it could be to find a single object that belonged to his lover in his own home, but Alexander had always had a very unique way of living his life that Magnus greatly respected.

After coming up empty handed from the last drawer that he had checked, Magnus had reached the end of his patience, convincing himself that going straight to the Institute was really his one and only choice. Suddenly, his gaze caught on something bright red at the bottom of the last drawer. He tentatively reached in to pull the thing out, a deep, shuddering sigh escaping his half-parted lips.

Omamori. Alexander's unexpected gift that he would, usually, be carrying with himself in his jacket's inner pocket. It was rare for him to forget to put the talisman in his pocket, even with all the suit changing that he'd done over the course of days, but he supposed that with all the planning for the party of Max's runing ceremony, even he, the High Warlock of Brooklyn, had forgotten about the little thing.

He caressed the red cloth with his fingertips. It was supposed to bring him luck and protection, Alexander had told him. Well, he certainly needed luck now, if he wanted to find his way to Alec and make sure he was okay.

With a sigh, Magnus put the talisman back where it belonged in the inner pocket of his jacket, and then a strange thing happened... his eyes seemed to draw themselves to the far side of the room where the wardrobe stood. He let his body send him towards the furniture, letting his fingers absentmindedly open the wooden doors, checking what was inside.

He supposed he would have to believe in the power of luck this time, as his face split into a huge grin at seeing Alec's formal suit hanging in his closet – the very same suit he'd worn to Max's party.

He grabbed the jacket with a flourish, spinning around to give himself more room and clutching the clothing between his fingers, ready to track down his lover.

Usually, tracking a Shadowhunter who was inside the walls of the Institute would be a lot harder of a task, requiring special access for the specific warlock's magic. Luckily for him, after the attack on the Institute the wards were still down (wards that he'd meant to graciously offer to put back up himself, before the Clave's brimming accusations – accusations that had somehow led to allegations of treason, which had him quickly reconsidering his offer). Well, he supposed that now worked in his favor, when he needed those wards down so he could use his warlock tracking without getting any interference.

Magnus closed his eyes and channeled all his energy into tracking Alec down, diving deeper and deeper into his subconscious mind until he could feel the connection on the other side, at once calming at least one of his worries about Alexander being okay. At least well enough to not be in any mortal danger. Though, as he pushed deeper, he was starting to feel the high agitation that his lover was feeling, not from his feelings precisely, that was Parabatai bonding, but the visual image was enough to ring warning bells in Magnus' head.

Alec was angry and furious at something, no, someone... someone, who apparently was laying face down on the ground, only a mass of dark hair prominent from his point of view, until the man shifted a little on the ground, his split lip showing and Magnus was fairly certain he already knew who that was.

Coming back out of their connection, Magnus' heart continued to beat in worry. "Oh, Alexander... what have you gotten yourself into?"

He was rather acquainted with the feeling of silent fury – the long years in the Institute while trying to suppress his more unconventional feelings had taught him of the art. But Alec wasn't a machine. Far from it. His sensitive nature, while not known to many, was a part of him that secretly kept him up at nights. And the continuous probing to his most sensitive parts – the feelings that he took great lengths in trying to keep in check – had finally elicited a response from him.

Enough was enough.

And thus laid a man on the ground by Alec's feet.

Seeing the hunched over man, who was clearly not Magnus anymore (the glamour had worn off with the force of the punch), taking his time to really look at the man – the curly black hair with the prominent facial hair – Alec couldn't quite comprehend what it was that he was seeing.

Clearly there had to be an explanation why it was him, of all people, trying to persistently poke at Alec, again and again, trying his thinning patience. There had to be an explanation, which he was yet to see, because Alec himself was probably one of the least sociable people in their circle so the chances of him actually managing to have offended the man or his family sometime in the past were close to nil – considering how little contact he actually had with other people outside his family.

But if that were true... then why, why in the Raziel's name would this man continue to haunt Alec without break? Was he just naturally insane? If that were the case, Alec would be glad, as it would solve the issue in one go, but the man was cunning and scheming above their level of understanding and insanity didn't sound like a believable reason.

With cold, frozen eyes, Alec watched how the man on the ground proceeded to stand up – one bent knee at a time – his fingers reaching up to wipe the corner of his split lip, hissing at the touch.

Alec knew that this was probably a good time to start showing some remorse for his actions, to start creating some sort of excuse which would explain his sudden hostility, but the clenched tight-white fists by Alec's sides told him that he was much more likely to deliver a second punch... and then probably a third rather than apologize. Rather than being apologetic, Alec was feeling fairly justified in his actions and Aldertree was clearly aware of that when he had decided to provoke Alec.

Aldertree. The Head of the Institute that Alec had grew up in – knocked down by a fellow Shadowhunter, his subordinate.

Alec knew he was screwed as soon as the man wobbled on his two feet, a breathy laugh escaping his lips. He wiped some more of the perfusing blood on his lips, finally deciding to talk. "Good punch," he said casually, while Alec tried to reign in his boiling temper by biting onto his lip and clenching his fingers in fists even tighter together. "I must say... I didn't quite expect you to find me out so soon."

"Why..." Alec started, but then had to take a few breaths to calm himself. "Why would you do that?"

Aldertree hummed in a casual consideration. "Hmm... to get information, of course."

It was boiling. The blood under his skin was scorchingly hot and even with his desperate tries to stop himself from lashing out, the trembling of his whole body gave away his inner turmoil. Alec just couldn't bear the sight of this man anymore. He was done. Closing his eyes, he bit out harshly, "You had no right. No right to do that to me."

"I suppose... morally it was not pretty," Aldertree said, then something flickered in his eyes, like a new piece of information forming in his mind. "I'm sorry, were you expecting for Magnus Bane to actually come to visit you?"

He was going to murder him.

Notedly, Alec had never done such a thing intentionally, by his own free will, but this man had simply gone too far.

Was he expecting Magnus to come to him?

No, he prayed for that to not happen only because he feared the moment that his lover did step inside the building he'd be, accidentally or not, stabbed to death. And yes, he did want to see Magnus again because he was Alec's lover, who he had not seen in days and was worried sick he would never get the chance to see again. So yes, the moment he realized that the Magnus in his arms, was not actually him, Alec was devastated... heartbroken, even.

Aldertree had created a bud of hope inside him only to crush it before it could even get the chance to bloom.

And now he was asking Alec if he had expected Magnus to come see him?

"You've gone too far, Aldertree," Alec said, looking the man in the eyes. "You've broken the accords, when the Clave learns about it-"

"What accords?" Aldertree suddenly asked, interrupting him.

Alec blinked, momentary put off. "Y-you tricked me! You-"

"Really?" Aldertree asked and then put a finger under his chin like an imitation of deep thinking. "Funny thing, because I can't quite remember it happening. On the contrary, I think your recent actions should be put in question."

Alec froze on the spot, feeling his legs nailed to the ground. No no no... this could not be happening to him. Not now. He couldn't afford to be put away now...

And before he could form another protesting thought, the Head of the Institute straightened up, addressing Alec in an authoritative voice. "Assaulting the Head of the Institute is a serious crime, Alec. Worth deruning, which I'm sure you knew, before deciding to punch me."

Alec shook his head. "This was not- I didn't assault you, you provoked me-"

"And who's going to believe that?" Aldertree asked abruptly, silencing Alec. "When you stand completely unscathed and me with a bleeding lip – who do you think, in this situation, was the one assaulted?"

"There're cameras - proof - of what you've done-" Alec tried protesting, if only grasping at straws. Aldertree just continued to look at him without twitching an eye – calm and confident in his own win.

"Do you honestly think you're ever going to get your hands on those things?"

"You'd-" Would he really abuse his power like that? The lazy smirk he gave Alec was proof enough, that - yes, he would. "Why're you doing this?" Alec asked helplessly. "Why're you taking this so far?"

"Alec, please," Aldertree had said and put a hand on Alec's shoulder, squeezing it with moderate strength. "This is not far enough. I'm still yet to get my hands on Magnus Bane."

Hearing him say that, the last string of composure snapped inside Alec - at once he wrenched his arm free from under Aldertree's pressing hand, giving him a look of disbelief which quickly morphed into one of pure anger. "You leave Magnus the hell out of this. I swear, Aldertree, if you-"

Aldertree held up a hand to silence the other Shadowhunter who was already taking a few menacing steps towards him and put his hand behind his ear in a mocking gesture. "What was it? A threat? I suggest you think it through carefully before wording your thoughts out, Shadowhunter. You don't want to see the consequences of your reckless behavior. Do you?"

There was a moment of deadly silence where they both met each other in a staring match, only the sound of Alec's aggravated breathing filling the silence of the dimly lit hallway.

Alec's whole body was rigid and tense.

Time and time and time and time again...

Why was he always losing to this man?

What was about this man that managed to disarm Alec in ways he had never felt before? In ways that made Alec feel vulnerable, hopeless and really disgusted with his own inability to act. Aldertree had tied down his arms and legs and put him in a box – both mentally, and Alec was fairly sure would soon physically also.

Suddenly, seemingly out of nowhere, Raj, dear ol' Raj, appeared in the abandoned hallway, yawning with his mouth wide open before he spotted Alec and then Aldertree together and quickly composed himself, addressing the Head of the Institute with the polite formal language.

Aldertree seemed delighted to see Raj.

"Perfect timing. Raj, come here," he urged the man with a hand gesture, a pleased smile on his face. With a bit of confused frown, Raj stepped closer to the duo. Alec purposefully ignored the man, already condemning him for the thing he was about to be asked to do.

There was one more wide smile coming from Aldertree before he addressed his subordinate. "Raj, please escort Alec to the underground prison. I'm afraid, he has become a threat to the institution. I expect a night in a cold cell should cleanse his mind of the treacherous thoughts."

Biting his lip to keep himself from yelling out at the man, Alec stood stock still, refusing to budge and shooting daggers with his eyes which he prayed would hit the man.

Sadly, the man continued smiling.

"Uh..." Raj darted his eyes between the two, shifting from one foot to another at the feel of cold tension in the air, himself confused. "Sir?" he asked, just to be sure.

Aldertree turned to look back at him, exasperated. "Have you not heard my order, Raj?"

Raj shook his head. "No, Sir, I heard it. I just thought it was a bit strange-"

"What is strange, Raj, is my bleeding lip. Don't you think so?" Aldertree had countered him, the other Shadowhunter shapping his lips in an 'oh' and then nodding in understanding. He cleared his throat and took a few, at first unsure, steps towards Alec's rigid back. "Um... " He reached out to grab hold of Alec's elbow but it got wrenched away, Alec shooting him a look which provoked Raj to hold his hands up in the air.

Aldertree heaved a sigh and that was enough for Raj to hurry and repeat the action. This time making sure to keep on holding onto Alec's elbow, even while the said Shadowhunter was drilling holes in the side of his head. "Come on, man. Don't make this even more difficult for yourself."

The hand that was not being gripped by Raj, clenched the fist tightly by his side, taking in strength. He only started moving when he thought he was mentally ready to accept the injustice that was being done to him.

And of course at that moment Clary Fairchild had to appear in the hallway, her face full of concern and confusion, asking questions about what was being done to Alec and where were they taking him. Aldertree reassured her that Alec's punishment was valid and his reckless behavior had to be treated before it posed even more danger to the institution. Clary was having about enough of that nonsense when Alec himself decided to step in.

"It's okay, Clary."

She shook her head in disbelief. "No, it's not! You can't just let him do this to you. You just can't! Alec." She pleaded for him to see it her way – that what Aldertree was doing was wrong and injust and he shouldn't cave in to him. But from what Alec could see - in worst case scenario, he was going to punch Aldertree again and then he would not be seeing the light of day ever again. Aldertree would make sure of it. Now, if he was lucky, he might only have to bear with this one night inside the rotting cell.

Not protesting was the best course of action for him right now. No matter how much he might hate it.

He was sure.

He reached out for her shoulder, giving it a pat in what he hoped was received as gratitude for her given support and turned back towards his captors, letting himself be lead towards the underground prisons.

Alec had spent two days inside the prison cell.

And Aldertree was yet to give it an okay to let him out.

Magnus was fuming – his magic going wild inside his modest apartment in a series of what he liked to call 'accidents' – a scorched chair, a broken wooden shelf, a medium rate explosion inside the kitchen – all the things that he couldn't quite control.

Speaking of things he couldn't control... his phone. That little devilish thing was going all out against the High Warlock of Brooklyn, refusing to speak, or well, beep or ring, or whatever one might call it when the thing started working.

Ever since the abrupt message from Clary two nights ago, he couldn't get in contact with either of the Nephilim. Two nights ago, when he tracked down Alexander only to witness him punching the lights out of the Head of the Institute, Magnus' phone went off, barely an hour later, a one word message on the screen – DON 'T.

Magnus scoffed. Don't what? Don't go blazing into the Institute? Don't worry about the consequences that his lover would surely have to face after assaulting the very man that seemed to be there out to get him? It was preposterous to expect him not to do something. Nobody just tells the High Warlock of Brooklyn to not do something... Magnus shook his head, apparently they do now.

He tried tracking Alexander again, but each time he did that, he was met with pitch blackness – that could sometimes simply mean the owner of the object being asleep, but after trying four times already, exhausting quite a large chunk of his magic in the process, Magnus had to wonder – how much sleeping could one Nephilim really do. Clearly something wasn't adding up here. And for some reason, their little gang of Shadowhunters plus one stray vampire were against him getting any information on it.

It only worried Magnus more.

Hence his embarrassing, really, outburst of magic inside his loft.

Magnus tapped his fingers against the arm of the chair he was sitting at, willing his phone to speak to him in any language.

He waited one minute...

Two...

Ten...

At minute twenty two, the thing finally drew out a sound – a quick beep that made Magnus nearly fall out of his chair but his graceful nature helped him keep his balance. He snatched the thing from the small table and read out the message from Isabelle.

FROM ISABELLE: ALEC HAS BEEN ARRESTED.

FROM ISABELLE: ALDERTREE WANTS YOU IN EXCHANGE FOR ALEC.

The heavy sigh that escaped the warlock felt like long since coming. "Oh, Alexander..."

Back in the Institute, Clary and Jace were sitting silently inside a quiet room – Jace on the only chair in the room and Clary at the end of the bed by a sleeping body – both with the expressions of concern on their faces.

Alec was still trapped inside the holding cell by Aldertree's command and though Maryse tried to ask her son to be let out, even her voice paled in comparison to the Head's. He reasoned that Alec was not ready yet to be let out, that he was not feeling remorseful enough. Whatever that might mean.

Clary was certain that it was only an excuse, while in truth Aldertree was buying time. She just wasn't sure for what.

Suddenly the sound of something ripping at the walls of the air itself snapped their focus on alert. Clary glanced at Jace with a questioning frown and Jace gestured for her to stay put, to stay where she was while he would go check what was happening outside those doors.

Jace silently crept by the door, pulling his Seraph Blade and keeping it ready in case he needed it. His hand grabbed hold of the knob and pushed the doors open. When he found no immediate threat coming at him, he stepped out of the room and motioned for Clary to stay, before closing the doors behind himself.

The sound that disturbed them was fairly familiar but he really hoped he was wrong. He could hurt his pride just this once, as long as it was not what the sound meant.

Unfortunatelly, as soon as he stepped behind the column, he cursed at the sight.

"Magnus. What're you doing here? Are you insane?"

Magnus rolled his eyes at the Nephilim. "I'm starting to consider the possibility of that," he said rather nonchalantly at which Jace bulged his eyes at him, clearly confused by him, but before he could comment further, Magnus held up his hand to stop him. "Never mind that. Now where's Alexander? Is he okay?"

"I don't know. He's still in prison. Aldertree doesn't want to let him out. But, hold on, how did you know about Alec?" Jace asked, giving Magnus a scrutinizing look.

"After you all seemed to cut off any contact with me, Isabelle had finally contacted me this morning."

Jace seemed to look even more confused now. "Izzy? No, uh, she couldn't have." Magnus raised an eyebrow at the Nephilim. "Magnus, she's still in bed. She's sick."

"What's wrong with Isabelle?" Magnus asked in concern then after Jace's pointed look nodded in understanding. "Yin Fen."

"Yeh. She looks like she's in a lot of pain, Magnus." The fear in Jace's voice was clear, and though the Shadowhunter sometimes tended to be a jerk, his love for his siblings should never be doubted.

Something clattered in the distance, making them both look in alarm at the sound – and while Jace's worried face about Magnus' well being was really touching to look at, they would probably be safer somewhere else, somewhere that was not the hallway in plain view.

"Lead me to her." Magnus gestured the urging motion with his hand to Jace.

Absentmindedly readjusting the covers of Isabelle's bed, Clary sat patiently still in the quiet room when suddenly the doors opened up and to her utter shock Jace came in, followed by Magnus.

"Magnus?" She jumped on her feet, and in her delight didn't stop her instinct to rush towards Magnus, hugging him by the middle.

"Hello there, biscuit." Magnus said fondly, patting her back.

"Magnus, we don't have much time here," Jace said by their side and Magnus at once untangled himself from Clary.

"Right, of course."

Sparks of blue magic descended on the prone form of Isabelle. Admittedly, he couldn't completely cure the illness that tormented her, but at the very least he could take the edge out of the pain, to let her sleep more peacefully.

Clary was standing by his side, hands crossed. "But if Isabelle wasn't the one that contacted you, then who was?" she asked in concern of the real problem there and glanced at Jace, who had his face locked in a neutral expression.

"It might have been a trap."

Of course it was a trap, Magnus thought in his own mind. As soon as he received the message on his phone, he knew the possibility of someone purposefully trying to lure him inside the Institute was very high and though he might have held a small hope for it not being the case, the Nephilim had just confirmed the fact. Nevertheless, Magnus would have still come, when his Alexander was in peril, trap or not.

Clary paced around the room, the gears in her head turning. "But who could've used her phone like that?"

"Oh, I can think of at least one persisting individual," Magnus said, the bitterness clear in his voice and at his words the doors to the room opened up with a bang.

Jace and Clary flinched at the sound, their hands going for their Seraph Blades while Magnus slowly stood up from the chair by Isabelle's bed, turning to face the intruder.

"My fellow Shadowhunters," the dark skinned man greeted the duo with a smile. "Magnus Bane. How very delighted I'm to see you here."

"Aldertree," Magnus greeted the Shadowhunter with a wry smile. "How very unpleasant to see you."

Aldertree chuckled at Magnus, but his posture remained upright, authoritative. "Let me get straight to the point. I want you to turn yourself in, or else I'm afraid Alec Lightwood would not be able to see the sunshine any time soon."

He stepped one step closer to the warlock and raised his head. "So what's it going to be?"

Surrounded by pitch blackness, sitting on the cold ground, Alec was beginning to lose his mind. He had been told that he'd only have to stay locked for a single night but clearly more time must have passed since then. His body felt too sluggish, weak and cramped for it to be only a single day. Also, judging by the meals he had received – five or six – he could estimate at least two days. Two days without any light and a word from the outside world.

Two days since he had any contact with his siblings about the mission. And even more days since he last had any contact with Magnus.

Breathing out loudly Alec leaned his head against the cold wall, closing his eyes. Not that it would matter when everything was dark either way.

Unexpectedly, the doors to the underground prison opened up and for one moment Alec wondered if it was already the time for another meal but then the Shadowhunter who was not Raj, that much he knew, started jingling the keys against the lock of his holding cell, opening it up.

"You're free to go."

Alec remained frozen to the spot, too confused to move.

"What?" he asked. "Why? What changed?" he kept asking the Shadowhunter but they kept silent and just lead Alec out of the prison box, out in the light... which quickly blinded Alec painfully.

Even after the long path down the hallways of the Institute, Alec still couldn't quite make his eyes to adjust to the lighting so quickly. He much more preferred to keep them closed but the other Shadowhunter who was apparently in charge of him now continued to move in a fast speed, so leaving only one option for Alec – to hurry after him.

The whole situation was absurd.

Alec expected some sort of word match between himself and Aldertree, not to be let out of the prison out of the blue like that.

After a few hundred meters, the other Shadowhunter mumbled something for Alec to wait there and scurried away, before Alec could even question him.

Alec groaned, his eyes still stinging, too vulnerable against the bright lighting inside the Institute, rubbing at them, as he started walking further down the hallways, in need to find his family. Maybe they would give him some intel on the situation.

He barely took a hundred meters before the voice that he dreamed about desperately to hear once again rang somewhere inside the hallway.

"...-can perfectly walk on my own, thank you."

The hand that was rubbing against his face, fell down by his side as Alec slowly lifted his head to look ahead at the man. The styled up hair with purple ends on the locks, the velvet jacket that fit snugly against the firm frame that Alec knew was hidden under all that expensive clothing and jewelry, the brown orbs that hid the most beautiful amber eyes...

Alec's breath hitched in his throat.

It was Magnus.

No, he must be dreaming, or- or Aldertree must be glamouring himself again, thinking that Alec would fall for the same trick twice, because Magnus couldn't possibly be inside the Institute... but then came out the man himself, stepping outside the room on Magnus' right, smiling in all his glory and Alec's world had slowly started to squeeze in on itself.

He stood there, rooted to the ground, slowly watching the events unfold – how with a resigned sigh Magnus extended his perfectly manicured hands, how the corner of Aldertree's lips quirked up when the magic suppressants were tightly attached on Magnus' wrists and how Alec's world literally seemed to end.

"No..."

The sound he had made took the attention of the people present – Magnus being the first to find Alec's eyes and lock them together. The surprise on Magnus' face then at seeing Alexander standing there which then morphed into one of sadness would haunt Alec till his last days. He felt his own face twist into a pained one, his eyes stinging for another reason altogether.

He couldn't believe this was actually happening. It just couldn't be happening. Magnus couldn't be- this couldn't be the end for how things ended for them.

He imagined the moment where he would see Magnus again, void of any remnants of the accusations that were never even true. He imagined how he would wrap his hands around the warlock, how it would feel to just bask in the moment of them having the chance to stay together.

But seeing him now was only tearing Alec's heart apart.

Not being able to hold out any longer, Alec took the remaining steps towards the man he had promised to himself he would never leave, only to nearly be stopped by Aldertree but at Magnus' furious remark on what could the Head be possibly afraid he would do when Magnus himself still had the magic suppressants on his wrists – he relented – and then there was nobody stopping Alec from wrapping his strong arms around his lover.

Holding onto Magnus desperately, Alec tried to bring them closer but his attempts would only remind them of Magnus hands that were bound and could only clutch desperately at the fabric of Alec's shirt. Hands around his shoulders and upper back, face tucked inside the crook of Magnus' neck, Alec continued to shiver as he held onto Magnus' body, while Magnus tried to say everything he couldn't say with his hands, say it with the soft kisses against the side of Alexander's neck.

Despite knowing old and new languages of the world, he somehow couldn't find the right words that would soothe the trembling Shadowhunter. Perhaps there were none.

When it was time to untangle from each other, the look on Alec's face nearly broke Magnus' ancient old heart. He feared the Shadowhunter would start blaming himself for this, while he knew that it was simply his choice.

"Alexander..." he started, but no words, wise enough seemed to come out of his mouth.

Alec just kept on shaking his head, a bruising grip on Magnus' arm. "Magnus... don't..."

One more urging by the Head of the Institute and Magnus knew they couldn't prolong the inevitable any longer. Swallowing the tight lump in his throat, Magnus leaned up towards Alec and gave him one last peck on the cheek, feeling the Shadowhunter's breath constrict, and then let himself be lead away by a pair of Shadowhunters.

Alec continued to watch him being dragged down the hallway until he disappeared completely from view. A chocked sound escaping his lips.

He absentmindedly could hear some noise coming from the room by his side but paid it no attention before hearing his own name spoken. "No, Clary, if Alec knew-"

It was Jace's voice.

Momentary stunned, Alec turned his head towards his parabatai who came out of the room, followed by the redhead and just couldn't believe in his own eyes.

With eyes still shining from the emotional separation, his voice sounded weak and hoarse as he spoke. "You were there with him... and you let them take him a-away?" he asked faintly, looking at his parabatai with all the hurt he was feeling, which he never imagined could get even greater.

"Alec, I..."

Jace tried speaking but Alec just didn't want to hear him.

No more.

He just wanted to run.

To get away from all those people.

Shaking his head and blocking all the sounds away, Alec ran off in the depths of the hallway, ignoring all the calls of his name.

It was horrible.

Everything was just... wrong.

Jace wasn't sure how everything just escalated so quickly, but he felt like everything was falling apart.

Ever since he last saw Alec, he couldn't put the imagine of his parabatai's betrayed face out of his mind.

With hands clutched tightly against his blonde locks, Jace sat on the steps in the cold corner.

He felt her presence before she even came to sit by his side.

"He hates me," he spoke in a broken whisper. " Alec, he... he hates me now."

There was a shake of the head and then a soft hand against his shoulder. "Alec doesn't hate you, Jace. He's just hurt," Clary said but Jace just couldn't believe her. Not this time.

He was certain of what he felt that time.

"He hates me," he said more firmly, brushing Clary's hand away. "You don't know what he's feeling – all that betrayal that's coming right at me – you don't know that, Clary. You can't know that."

Seeing his agitated state, Clary tried to soothe him.

"Jace. Jace. Whatever Alec is feeling now, it's being influenced over his worry for Magnus. It's not his real feelings-"

Jace suddenly stood up, turning to face her. "But it is. Because I... I feel it. It's real. It's happening right now. And it's been happening ever since I activated the Sword," he said as a sudden realization, his face morphing into one of horror. "I did this to Alec. To Magnus. I'm the one who did this," he whispered brokenly.

"Jace, please, no one is blaming you-"

"I'm blaming myself, okay, Clary!?" he shouted out, and though he might have felt bad about making Clary flinch, he couldn't care about it now. "I am," he repeated more calmly then. "Can't you just not- stop being nice to me, okay?"

"I'm just trying to help-"

He knew she only wanted to help but with everything that happened... Valentine... their whole situation was just weird now. Weird and confusing and honestly it just hurt. So much that he couldn't bear it anymore.

"Well don't. Because I can't take it anymore. It's too much," he said and stalked off, leaving Clary watch helplessly at his retreating back, calling out for him in vain, him not even caring about nearly colliding with Simon and just brushing him off.

"Whoa. What was that about? Clary?" Simon asked at seeing her hurt expression and came to stand by her. "Hey. Hey, is everything okay?"

"I... don't know," she said and let herself be embraced in a comforting hug.

to be continued... Your feedback is much appreciated.