Alec inhaled and tasted salt in the air. Through the window, he could see the beautiful blue water where it met the light blue sky in the straight sharp horizontal line. Alec could see the waves crashing against the rocks, but he couldn't hear them. He couldn't hear anything over his son's wailing cries.

"Maybe this was a bad idea after all," Magnus yelled over the noise. "Sorry!"

"He's fed," Alex said. "He's changed. He isn't cold or hot. I rock him, and he cries. I set him down, and he cries. I don't know what's wrong!"

"Maybe he's bored?" Magnus suggested.

"With this view?"

"You never know."

Alec got up off the bed and rummaged through his suitcase while Magnus leaned over this shoulder.

"You brought seraph blades on vacation? Magnus said dubiously.

Alec gave him a look as if saying, of course, and held up his witchlight.

"How's that going to help?"

"Just take it," Alec said.

"What am I supposed to do with that?

"Show it to him."

Magnus took it with an air of extreme patience. The soft white light it had made in Alec's hand changed to red, greens and pinks now it was in Magnus's grip. The light shone reflecting off the mirror on the wall by the dresser.

Magnus carried the now glowing witchlight over to his son's crib. And to his surprise, the cries stop. This son looked up at the light with wide eyes.

"Finally!" Alex sighed and collapsed onto to bed. "Don't move Magnus."

"You want me to just stand here, indefinitely?"

"Just stand there while I sleep, yes." Alec had his arm over his eyes and was sprawled out on the bed. Magnus smiled. He leaned down close to Max in his crib.

"Daddy is being very selfish," Magnus cooed at his son. "All that greedy sleeping." Magnus waved the light over Max's face and was rewarded with the baby's giggle.

"Oh, you are so cute!" Magnus cried and scooped Max into his arms. "Do you wanna hold the light, blueberry?"

Magnus transferred the witchlight to Max's hand and was relieved to see it go dark. At least he wasn't sired by a fallen angel.

"Papa can make it shine again," Magnus said, taking the light back. Max giggled as the bright lights shone again.

Magnus could tell Alec had actually fallen asleep. He decided to let him sleep and walked out the door onto the beach, Max in his arms.

They had rented a small cottage near the water. Magnus had decided to book it for the whole month even if they had to be back in a few weeks for Simon's ascension.

"You know blueberry," Magnus said, softly to his son. There was no one else on the beach. "I was born here. On this island. It was a very very long time ago, and it had a different name then."

"I don't know how I am going to answer your questions," Magnus continued, rocking Max back and forth in his arms. Max's eyes were closing. "Once you are old enough to ask them. The world is a big scary place and your dad, and I will probably be very over-protective and annoying, but that's only because we love you. But I know we can't protect you from everything, however, hard we try."

Magnus couldn't believe how much he loved this child. In next to no time it had happened. Faster even than falling in love with Alec had been. Loving a child. Loving your child was different than any other love in the world. It was the ultimate in unconditional. It was a new and marvelous experience for him. A new experience he owed to Alec.

Max fell asleep in his arms as Magnus walked down the beach. He had started heading back when Max's eyes closed. Opening the door to the cottage with a flick wave of his hand Magnus stepped in and gently put Max in his crib where it sat next to the bed and tucked him in. When Magnus was sure, Max was actually asleep he collapsed into the bed next to Alec and closed his eyes.

Magnus awoke to the sound of the waves crashing. He took a moment to rejoice in the fact that the baby wasn't crying.

When he sat up, he saw why. Max was in Alec's arms being fed his morning bottle.

"You're awake," Alec said.

"Morning," Magnus said groggily.

"Thanks for taking over last night," Alec said.

"You don't have to thank me," Magnus said, incredulously. "We are doing this together right?" He got up out of bed and walked blearily to the coffee.

"Yeah," Alec said. "But it was my idea. I mean…"

Magnus poured himself a cup of coffee and walked back over to Alec.

"Don't think like that," Magnus said kissing Alec on the cheek. "I am so glad it occurred to you we could keep him. I never thought I would raise a child. I can't have children and I am not a popular babysitter." He smiled. "I had given up the idea as impossible centuries ago. That's why it didn't occur to me. It doesn't mean I don't love every minute of it."

"I know," Alec said. "You have been great I guess I figured-"

"You figured like you do with everything," Magnus said. "That you should take the greater responsibility." Alec's face told him he was right. "You are so old sometimes you know."

"That's rich coming from you."

"That's not what I meant," Magnus said. "You are more an adult than I am."

Alec gave him a funny look, but before he could speak Max finished his bottle and started fussing.

"Here let me burp him," Magnus said, holding his hands out. "Go get some coffee."

"Magnus I-" Alec said, still trying to find words.

"I was merely stating a fact," Magnus said, putting a towel over his shoulder. "You do not need to reply." He picked Max up out of Alec's arms and laid him over the towel on his shoulder. Then Magnus started rubbing Max's back gently with the ease of practice.

Alec shook his head as if to clear it.

"I wasn't always such an adult you know," Alec said, walking over to the coffee.

"Oh yes I remember," Magnus said. "You were quite the innocent one when I met you." He laughed. "I guess I kinda corrupted you after all."

"Says the man burping an infant," Alec said.

"Fair point."

"Did you want to corrupt me," Alec asked, a glint in his eyes as he sipped his coffee.

"I am not terribly proud of it but yes," Magnus said. "I saw you at that party and wanted to do some rather naughty things to that beautiful innocent blue-eyed boy."

"You dirty old man," Alec teased.

"Not anymore," Magnus said. "Now I am papa." He smiled down at Max in his arms still swaying back and forth without really being aware of it. It had become natural to him.

Alec stared out the window while he sipped his coffee.

"You told me you were born here," Alec said. "But do you remember where?"

"Like which house?" Magnus said. "No. I bet it has long since been torn down or build over or some such thing."

"Do you know what part of the island?"

"I don't remember," Magnus said. "I can remember what the inside of the house I lived in look like, at least a little. Mostly just details. Like the scratches on our table made by years of use. Or the way the light came in through the window."

"I wonder sometimes," Alec said. "If we should try and find Max's biological parents. In case, he asked us." Alec turned his head away from the window and turned to Magnus with a desperate look on his face. "And he will ask."

"I know," Magnus said. "It's scary."

"Very scary," Alec agreed. He walked over and held his hands out for Max. Magnus gave him up, reluctantly but he needed to change his shirt. It had baby spit-up on it.

"Maybe your parents can help," Magnus said.

"You think?"

"Maryse at least," Magnus said. "She loves Max. And she might be able to give us some advice."

"When we get back I will ask her," Alec said. "But for now let's just be on vacation. Max is too little and adorable to question his place in the world right now. Let's just enjoy it."

"To the beach then?" Magnus said. Alec nodded, his face lighting up with a smile.

"You are the first lover I have ever taken a family vacation with," Magnus said as they walked down the beach taking turns holding Max. Max was wide eyed and seemed to be enjoying the view at last.

"Aren't I the first person you have ever raised a child with as well," Alec said. "So that would explain why there were no family vacations for you."

"True," Magnus said. "But whenever I think of a first you are for me I like to tell you."

"I love it when you do," Alec said.

"I know," Magnus said. That's why he did it after all. "You are the first person I have ever taken to this island as well. The first person I showed my birth place to."

Alec looked at Magnus with so much emotion on his face. So much love and wonder. Magnus knew Alec didn't know what to saw. He was aware that his words meant so much to Alec even if Alec didn't have any words of his own. Magnus tried to think of them all then. All the firsts Alec was too him.

"My first shadowhunter," Magnus said. "The first person I ever healed who refused to let go of me. You thanked me for healing you as well."

"Had no one really ever thanked you before?" Alec asked.

"No shadowhunter," Magnus said. "And not so sincerely. You thanked me like I was a person. Like I didn't owe you the healing just because you were born with angel blood and I wasn't."

Alec was silent. He didn't want to think about Magnus to be treated so horribly. It made him defensive. He wanted to help but of course, he couldn't. Alec didn't say anything and Magnus continued with his list.

"You were the first one to ever defend me. You did it on our first date when you wouldn't let me get in front of you. And again at Taki's when that fight broke out. Jumping up you put your body between the danger and me."

"Is that what that kiss was for then?" Alec asked softly. He remembered that kiss. It had been different than all those previous. More urgent. More emotional.

"Yes," Magnus said. "That one action, you trying to protect me, invoked so many emotions in me all I wanted to do was share them with you but I was worried it would drive you away so I put everything I couldn't say into that kiss."

"You could have told me even then you know," Alec said. "It would have been welcome."

"Yes well, I know that now," Magnus said. "But at the time, I was still under the false impression that I cared far more than you did."

"And you really didn't realize you were wrong until you saw me in Edom."

Magnus nodded.

"So you stayed with me all that time thinking I cared less for you than you did for me?" Alec said. "Why did you stick it out so long?"

"Well I did try and do the sensible thing once, but you won me over by kissing me in front of everyone in the Accords Hall." The memory brought a smile to his face.

"That was another of my first you know," he continued before Alec could speak. "The first person to show me he wasn't ashamed of me. The first person to introduce me to their parents after shocking the crap out of half the shadowhunter population like that."

"And that didn't make you realize how much I loved you?"

"What can I say," Magnus said. "I am a foolish old man. Maybe I didn't think someone so young and new to love had the capacity to love like I did."

"Very foolish thinking indeed. But you are my foolish old man," Alec said. "My ageist foolish old man."

Magnus loved the possessive tone in Alec's voice. He loved the feeling of belonging he always felt when Alec used it. Magnus wanted to make Alec feel as good as he did so he continued down his list of firsts.

"You have saved my life more times than anyone else I have ever known," Magnus continued. "Saved me from petrifying, saved me from bleeding to death take your pick. But what still takes my breath away is that you want me more than the world. No one else ever did. You are the first person I tried to die for. I have risked my life so many times for so many things, but it was always a risk not a guarantee."

"That makes a big difference it's true," Alec said. "The hope you can survive a fight rather than total surrender."

"Then there are the obvious firsts you know about," Magnus said. "First person to get me to open up and share my past. The only one who wanted to marry me. Raise a child with me. The first person to make me part of their family. Their whole family."

Magnus knew there were more first Alec was to him, but they were harder to put into words. More difficult to define so in black and white.

"Thank you." Alec packed so much emotion into those two words. Magnus could see the look in Alec's blue eyes. Those blue crystals were so full of gratitude for Magnus's words. The words Magnus knew always brought Alec joy. To know how important Alec was to him.

"Anytime my love," Magnus said.