Blinding light and pain encompassed them all as they crashed back to the current reality. He held on to Jace with all his strength but when he opened his eyes it was Lilith who was writhing in his grasp. He saw several things happen at once. Jace's body arched off the bed as he gasped in a deep breath, Emeel and Phillip scrambled to finish the binding runes to hold the demon and unexpectedly, Robert holding Jonathon tight to him while Maryse held two seraph blades, crossed at his neck ready to behead him and Lilith striking out grabbing Jace by the throat and lifting him into the air.

"Put him down or Jonathon dies!" Robert barked.

"Anything you do to him will happen to the Nephilim," she cried out.

"Then at least he will die at our hands and not yours," Luke gritted. "I will not allow you to harm him anymore. I'd rather take his life myself!" He looked to Robert and Maryse and nodded his head. Maryse stiffened prepared to kill when Lilith dropped Jace to the floor.

"I didn't beleive you had it in you Lycan," she hissed. "Give me Jonathon and I will leave with out a fight."

"So you can continue to torment and torture us? I don't think so!" Luke growled.

Lilith didn't notice Emeel moving until it was too late. The angel pressed a metal rune against her skin and the flesh burned and charred, searing around the rune. "No!"

"You are bound Lilith, bound in the name of Raziel," Emeel said as she led her from the room. Phillip followed with Jonathon.

"Jace!" Luke wailed gathering the broken boy into his arms. "Jace!"

Jace cringed at Luke's touch the memories of what happened in the cell still to fresh to over come. "No! Don't touch me!" He fought to get away but Luke's grip just tightened.

"It wasn't real! It wasn't me! You have to know that kid; it wasn't me." He was trembling worse then Jace. "I would never hurt you. I would never hurt you," he repeated over and over unaware that he was rocking him.

Jace's clouded mind began to lose the fuzziness around it's edges. He was at the institute not locked in a cell and his body hurt but he wasn't bloody or covered in filith. Luke was there. "L..luke?" his voice rasped as he wound his arms around him.

"Yes," he sobbed and kissed the top of his head. "I've got you."

Magnus could sense Alec's presence even before he entered his home. He scratched Chairman Meows head as he walked up the stairs. "I know you're here gorgeous no need to hide," he purred. It had been a long time since they had been able to spend any time alone and he was glad Alec had found a few minuets to spare for him. "There you are," his smile faded when he saw Alec, sitting on the sofa with his knees pulled to his chest. "What's wrong?"

Alec dove into his arms as soon as he sat next to him and broke down. "He thought I was going to make him," he cried. "How could he think that? I would never do that!"

"Shhh love you're not making sense. I need you to tell me what happened or let me look." Alec placed Magnus's hand on his face conveying his permission with his watery eyes. He softly kissed him before pressing their foreheads together and it only took a few moments for him to see the whole scene play out.

He held him for a moment letting him cry it out before finally lifting his chin and looking him in the eyes. "I know how badly that hurt and as much as I'm not Blondie's biggest fan you have to know he didn't mean it Alec. You don't know what happened to him before you arrived."

"I don't care!" he pushed away from him and stood, pacing the room. "It was in his mind! He had to have thought that all along, that, that I would force myself on him and that's why he said it!"

"Alec," he tried to intervene but he was too upset.

"I should have never trusted him. I should have never told him the truth. How could he still be my parabatai if he felt this way?" he demanded though he didn't give Magnus time to respond. "I'll go back there and make sure he's safe but then I'm done. I will break our bond."

"One of you must either die, become a downworlder, or be exiled to sever a parabatai bond Alec."

"I'm aware," he snapped. "Are you going with me?"

"Someone has to pick up the pieces," Magnus sighed.

Alec spun on him, "I don't need you warlock."

Magnus's eyes flashed and he seemed to get bigger and more menacing as he leaned over Alec. "You are pushing your luck with me Nephilim. I'm not your whipping boy. If I didn't love you I'd have turned you in to a rat already," he growled and pushed past him out the door.

Jace fidgeted with the sheet for the thousandth time in the past hour before throwing it aside and standing. He felt like he'd been hit by a bus, several times over but he couldn't just sit here.

"What do you think you're doing?" Robert asked as he entered the room. They had only left the boy alone for a few moments while they took care of other things.

"I can't just sit here. I have to find him, have to talk to him." he pulled on his shoes and a shirt nearly toppling over but catching himself on the footboard of the bed.

He grabbed the younger man's arm, "We will find him Jace. He's my son I'm also worried about him."

He was unable to stop the shiver that tore through him. Alec was missing because of something he some how knew he was responsible for but he just couldn't remember what and he knew that meant Robert was going to punish him. It would be best just to get it over with so he could go search for his best friend instead of arguing the merit of his punishment. He pulled the belt from his jeans and laid it on the bed in front of Robert and took his shirt off before leaning forward against the bed, eyes clinched shut.

He was taken aback as he watched the boy, "What are you doing?"

"Just punish me so I can go find Alec."

"Punish you for what?" Luke asked as he and Maryse walked into the room.

He clinched his fists and tried to calm himself. "For hurting Alec or what ever caused him to run away."

"That's not your fault Jace," Maryse stepped closer. "Magnus sent a message to Izzy he and Alec are on their way here now."

Tension visibly melted from his body as Luke placed a hand on his back. "You should be laying down."

"No, I should be trying to fix this," he pushed past them and set out for Izzy's room.

Luke shook his head and considered spanking the boy until he had no choice but to lay down and rest. He looked up when Maryse started laughing and he soon joined in. Robert on the other hand had an unsettled look on his face.

"Jace!" Isabelle screeched running to him, jumping in his arms and hugging him.

"Oooff," he huffed unable to keep his footing and slamming back against the wall but still managed to get the full embrace of her hug. "Ok, can't breath."

"Oh!" She stepped back, "What are you even doing out of bed?"

"By the angel everyone is obsessed with getting me in bed." She slapped his arm. "Ow."

"You look like hell," Simon said from his position on the side of the bed. "Need a Band-Aid?"

"Bite me bloodsucker," he smiled.

"You're always obsessed with me biting or sucking something. Wait that did not come out right," he frowned. Izzy and Jace both laughed.

"I need your help Isabelle. I have to speak to Alec, alone, before your parents or anyone else talks to him."

She didn't ask his reason because she trusted him and knew he would never do anything to harm Alec. "We will go meet him. I'll send him here first."

He smiled at her, placing his hand on her cheek. "Thank you."

She grabbed his arms as he swayed on his feet and helped him to sit on the bed. "Just do me a favor don't faint and break my stuff ok?"

"Ha ha," he groaned falling back on her soft comforter. He'd nearly fallen asleep when the door opened again and Alec walked through.

"You're awake."

He got to his feet and started toward his parabatai, "Alec!" he smiled.

Alec held up his hand to stop him. "You're alright I see."

"I, um, yes," he nodded. "Are you? They told me you just ran out after trying to connect with me. I appreciate what you tried to do and I know what you must have seen," he blushed furiously. "I'm sorry you had to see what.."

"Apology not accepted Jace," he cut in scathingly. "That twisted shit was in your head so you had to have been thinking it all along!"

He flinched like he'd been punched, "how can you say that?"

"One of us has to tell the damn truth and it obviously isn't you!"

"Why are you acting like this?"

"I promised I would make sure you were safe and you are but now I'm done." He stepped toe to toe with the younger blonde. "I want our bond severed. Don't worry I don't expect you to do anything unselfish, it might hurt you or something so I'll be the one who walks away from the Nephilim!"

"Alec, please what ever you saw it, it wasn't anything I wanted," tears dripped from his eyes but he didn't have to strength to physically sob anymore.

"I KNOW!" he screamed and stormed out slamming the door.

"Alec you're making a huge mistake. You misunderstood," Magnus tried to stop him and explain.

With his true Nephilim speed he turned on Magnus and punched him in the jaw. "No, I finally understand everything just fine!" All the warlock could do was watch him walk away.