'I didn't notice at all until Jace told Izzy to drop the salt and by then the damage had been done. I tried to get some of it off, but there was no helping it. I've never had lasagna that salty.' Magnus laughed at Alec's retelling of cooking dinner with his siblings the day before. They were on their way to spend the whole day at Warlock Inc, as Magnus had two meetings three hours apart and he wanted to check on some of the divisions.
'You are fortunate it is not that easy to get sodium poisoning.'
'You're telling me,' Alec replied. 'I've only once ever thrown food out without even trying it and that was after Izzy got her hands on the nutmeg. I've never bought it since.'
'Such a shame, it's a lovely spice. I think I have some in the cupboard.'
'Yeah, I've used it a few times, but at your place Izzy can't get to it.' They entered the lobby of the Warlock Inc offices and were greeted by the security at the front desk before making their way over to the elevators.
'Do you actually have an office here?' Alec asked as the elevator doors closed.
'Yes, have we never gone there?'
Alec shook his head: 'We've always tried to spend as little time here as possible. I wouldn't even know which floor it is on.'
This brought a smile to Magnus' face: 'Well then, maybe we don't need to be early to the meeting.' As the doors opened Magnus pressed the button for the top floor and the doors once again closed and the elevator started taking them higher and higher into the building.
'Top floor?' Alec raised an amused eyebrow.
'It's my building, is it not?' When the elevator doors slid apart Alec found himself confused. There seemed to be some form of cafeteria or restaurant beyond the elevator doors. It was still early morning so it was almost completely empty.
'Not what you were expecting?'
Alec turned to Magnus confused: 'I thought you were taking me to your office?'
'I am. You didn't think I'd have the entire floor for my office?' Alec raised a sceptical eyebrow. 'You're right, I could. But with how little I'm here, I didn't want to monopolise the view.' It was very light indeed and Alec only now noticed that there was not a single internal wall in the space. Everything was glass supported by a few pillars around the elevator exits. Magnus led the way around to the other side where there were the only walls on the floor and a door with a nameplate on it: "Magnus Bane".
'What, no title?'
'Well, I still need to have a meeting about that sometime soon. The corporate structure hasn't really changed since we began and it's been something I've been meaning to get around to, but have been putting it off for a couple of months. I don't really like the official parts.' Alec chuckled at this, but didn't respond. Instead they stepped into the office and Alec's breath immediately got caught in his throat. It was a beautiful office, well furnished, blahblah, but the window... His eyes were instantly drawn to the wall of glass behind the desk and he felt his feet drag him over to it. There was a glass door that led out onto a walkway that ran around the entire floor.
He turned to Magnus to ask for permission to step outside, but was met with a knowing smile and didn't even bother. The wind slapped him in the face as soon as he opened the door. They were up very high and only a simple railing would keep him from plummeting to his death. Alec loved high places. Had ever since he was a kid. There was something about the thrill of seeing the depth below him and the freedom of the sky around you. And the view on this side of the building.
'Best view in all of New York, if I do say so myself,' Magnus suddenly stood next to him. 'I figured you would like it.'
'It's incredible. Why do you not spend more time here?'
Magnus leant on the railing: 'When I'm at home, I've got full control over who I see and when I see them. I set meetings and I keep them. Back when I spent most of my time in this office, everyone just dropped by whenever they wanted something. There was no filter, no boundaries. Sometimes, that's a good thing. I get involved in more decisions and I get informed of things that are happening more quickly. But I kept on getting interrupted and disturbed while I was doing other things. I used to have assistants, but they all annoyed me very quickly before I asked them to leave.'
'Now you just have me barging in whenever,' Alec joked. This caused Magnus to chuckle.
'You could never annoy me.' Alec turned to meet Magnus' eyes and was met with a soft expression that he couldn't help but return. They stayed like that for a moment. Unspoken words hanging in the air.
Eventually Alec turned back to the view: 'Well, if you want to work here more often, I'd be happy to keep everyone out of your office.'
'Are you sure you wouldn't just spend all your time standing on this balcony?'
'Hey, you know I take my job very seriously.'
'Of course, darling.' The term of endearment instantly forced a blush to Alec's cheeks and Magnus couldn't help but laugh at Alec's reaction. 'We should probably get to our meeting.'
'Your meeting,' Alec replied, regaining himself. 'I'm not going in there.'
'What?' Magnus said in mock surprise. 'You don't enjoy spending hours bickering back and forth of the minutiae of budget resolutions?'
'Shut up,' but the smile on Alec's face was more than enough.
The meeting with Theo went surprisingly well. For one, there was no shouting match between Theo and any of his direct subordinates, which was great. And Magnus came out of it very impressed with this new girl Maia, who seemed to have a knack for the job. In all, time well spent and Magnus was in a good mood so he wanted to go down to the public outreach department next and see what they were currently up to.
Of course that set off a few red flags for Alec, as that was where Cassandra would usually be found, though she had been rather quiet since the storage closet incident. Nevertheless, Alec knew he would never deny Magnus anything, so they made their way to the right floor. A small smile pulled at the corners of Alec's mouth in anticipation for what would follow next.
When Magnus was expected the corridors were always slightly busier with employees who wanted to catch a glimpse of the man himself. Eyes would turn to the man under his protection and stare in awe at the pure presence that was one Magnus Bane. And that was when people were prepared for him. Magnus liked the occasional surprise visit to any and all departments, design was his particular favourite, none were excluded from his whims.
When he was not expected you could see the more unguarded reactions. People had dropped drinks and paperwork, mouths had fallen open, someone had walked into a wall, and one wolf whistle before someone else had slapped the catcaller over the head and told him that this was Mister Bane himself. Yeah, it was entertaining. And Alec got a front row seat. As the dull guy behind Magnus, he didn't stand out, but he could catch every eye. It was brilliant.
As the doors slid apart Alec followed closely on Magnus' heels. He was not disappointed in the reactions. Double takes, slacked jaws and a spit take within the first half of the halway as Magnus strode by. Magnus almost seemed to float and shimmer in the attention on him. Confidently they made their way through the hall before Magnus forcefully pushed open the doors to the open office space behind it.
'Good afternoon, public outreach office,' he announced with a flourish of his hand.
'Mister Bane!' the head of public outreach cried in surprise. A young female intern right by Alec lost her grip on her travel cup of coffee and Alec reached out just in time to catch it.
He gave her a concerned look as he put the cup back in her hand: 'You okay?' She nodded mutely before a furious blush rose up on her cheeks and she stammered out a "thank you". 'You're welcome.' Alec chuckled before turning his attention back to Magnus, who gave him a meaningful look. The girl scurried away and Alec just shrugged at Magnus, not a clue as to what Magnus was implying. Magnus rolled his eyes and strode further into the space to meet the department head halfway.
'We didn't expect you here so soon after…'
Magnus held up a soothing hand: 'It's alright. All is well that ends well. I spoke to Meliorn about a project a couple of days ago and he said that he would put it with you. I found myself with some time and was really curious to see if you had already gotten to it. Of course it is not a problem if you haven't, but that's why I'm down here.'
'The Bronx clothing exchange project?'
'That's the one,' Magnus smiled one of those broad smiles that Alec liked a lot. It showed his confidence.
'I'll get the team and the materials we have so far, run through the pitch we were going to put forward.'
'Oh, informal setting. Much my preference. Take all the time you need, I've got a good hour or two.'
'I only need five,' with that the department head turned around and started talking to some of his people.
Magnus turned to face Alec: 'Well that's a surprise.' Alec shrugged with a smile. 'Let's take a lap around the office and-.'
'Magnus!' The interruptive voice made Alec move almost reflexively between Magnus and the source of the noise.
'Cassandra.' Alec's low voice immediately stopped the brunette in her tracks.
'Alec.'
'I believe we had established that it is mister Bane and mister Lightwood to you,' Alec spoke firmly. It stopped her for a moment as she chewed her lip.
'Is it true?' Alec's eyes flicked down to the magazine in her hand and he immediately put it together.
'That's none of your business.'
'What is she talking about?' Magnus stepped out from behind Alec.
'Take one look at that gossip rag in her hand and remember that talk we had a little over a week ago.' Almost immediately he could see realisation dawn upon Magnus face before something a bit more devious took hold. Magnus took a small step closer to Alec so his shoulder was brushing against Alec's arm. Alec thought it would be more appropriate to keep some distance, but if this really upset Magnus… But he hadn't seen any sign of that.
'Oh, that nonsense.' Magnus sounded fake. Which was weird, because Magnus was an excellent liar. 'It is a… A completely baseless rumour fabricated by some supporters. You of all people should know that I would never date an employee, right, Miss Smith?' Alec was confused. Magnus had said nothing that wasn't true, but it had sounded false. And then, when he saw a realisation fall over Cassandra's face followed by a crushing disappointment, he put it together.
'That would be completely irresponsible, right?' Scheming made Alec uncomfortable, but right now that played to his advantage. Cheeks flushed, just the slightest hint of hesitation in his voice. Really, anyone would think he was hiding something. Which he was, just something very different. Magnus and Alec shared a quick look before turning back to Cassandra.
Without another word she turned around and stalked off. As soon as she was out of sight, both Magnus and Alec released a sigh of relief.
'You know this is going to have consequences, right, Magnus?'
'Probably, but we'll deal with those when we get there.' At this point the head of the public outreach department returned to fetch them for the briefing on the plans for the clothing exchange.
The pitches were pretty interesting and even Alec got into the second idea, which involved lending out clothes for job interviews, as it was something he could actually relate to. Magnus caught his interest and sent him a knowing smile, indicating that he was equally interested in exploring the option, even if merely for Alec's sake.
Really, the day as it continued seemed set on having them forget about the incident with Cassandra as much as possible. The second meeting went fine, they sat down with Ragnor for a rather long discussion on business that Alec could not even pretend to keep up with, and by the time they wanted to head back home it was time for dinner and Magnus suggested they get some take out on the way.
They were both in quite excellent moods, until they stepped out of the building and were assaulted by gossip reporters. Now, reporters outside the building was not unusual, but more than one or two was, and certainly a crowd of at least a dozen shouting "Mister Lightwood" as well as "Mister Bane". Alec was so overwhelmed, he didn't know what to do. They were on all sides, there was no way to shield Magnus and they were walking…
'Alexander?' Magnus took a step back and bumped into Alec's chest as he tried to avoid them. 'Any plans?'
'Mister Bane, do you have any comment on the recent rumours?'
'Several, only three if I don't want to get arrested for assault, two if we want to avoid answering questions.' Alec put his arm up to block a particularly pushy reporter from getting any closer.
'And the last two?'
'Back into the building and rethink our strategy.'
'Or?'
'Mister Lightwood, can you tell us about how your relationship came to be?'
'Run.' Magnus looked up at Alec who moved in front of Magnus to shield him from three voice recorders being shoved in his face. His eyes locked with Magnus.
'I guess cardio it is.' Alec nodded and soundlessy mouthed a countdown. Then in one smooth move, with surprisingly little force, there was suddenly a path through. Magnus didn't hesitate but bolted instantly. Alec was immediately right besides him, a hand on his upper arm to steer him in what was apparently determined direction. They took a corner and then another and suddenly they were in a parking garage with Magnus back against the concrete as he tried to catch his breath.
'Sorry about that,' Alec glanced out around the corner but then turned to Magnus. Alec too was slightly winded, his pupils dilated with adrenaline, but the slightest hint of a grin on his face.
'Not at all. You warned me my actions would have consequences. Miss Smith clearly deals with jealousy worse than I anticipated.'
'You think Cassandra called them?' Alec leant against the wall next to him and rested his head back in contemplation.
'They knew your last name, Alexander. That eliminates a whole lot of options.'
'This is going to come back to bite us, isn't it?'
'Probably,' replied Magnus. 'But so what? I can deal with a bogus article or two if you can.'
'I mean, it's your reputation on the line.'
'I'm not the one who was outed as homosexual to the entirety of the New York gossip section.'
'Well, it had to happen sometime. I should probably ask Lydia and Aline to keep an eye out for the article so we know what's in it.'
'Yes, but first let's get takeout and go home. I'd prefer to not spend my evening in a parking garage.' And so they did.
They didn't have to wait long for the article. The next morning Alec received a text from Aline with a list of the five gossip rags that had decided to go for an article. The worst among them had even put them on the cover.
Bane back in the saddle
After months of silence from one of new york's wealthiest and most fashionable lotharios, it seems that the heart of Magnus Bane, owner of Warlock Inc, has finally been conquered. The secrecy surrounding the newly exposed relationship suggests that Bane has finally decided to get serious. The target of his affections; his very own bodyguard known only by the name "Alec".
A source within Warlock Inc has stepped forward after their suspicious public denial of earlier rumour in which mister Bane stated that he would never date an employee despite having done so on multiple previous occasions. In the past three months mister Bane has not been seen anywhere without his relatively new shadow close by. It raises the question of how long this has been going on exactly and whether or not the function of bodyguard is no more than a thin cover to hide their more personal attachment. This is however merely speculation.
The identity of this new mystery man in Bane's life is, however, no longer subject to guesswork. Our source within Warlock Inc identified him as Alexander Lightwood, a man with a true cinderella story. Lightwood is the son of former New York socialites Robert and Maryse Lightwood, who worked for one of Bane's business rivals, the Clave Corporation, but tragically lost their lives in a car accident over six years ago.
Mister Lightwood, only eighteen at the time, took charge of his three younger siblings, who had never appeared in public and they fell of the map. Only to resurface here, six years later in the arms of his parents business rival. Not much else is known about the devastatingly handsome man and very few people are willing to comment on him or his relationship with Magnus Bane.
Whatever follows for the couple, we'll be sure to stick with them and find out more as all of us are aware that life with Magnus bane is never dull.
'Well, that could have been a lot worse,' Magnus said after he finished reading the article. 'And now I don't have to ask you how old you are anymore.'
'You were wondering about that?'
'I've told you before, Alexander, you are a very hard man to read. There's many things I wonder about you. You know that you're not exactly forthcoming with information about yourself, right?'
'Is that a problem?'
'No, not at all. I know you're a private person, so I don't want to push. But it makes it always interesting when I find out new things about you.'
They had expected to hear more from people finding out about the articles. Alec had informed his siblings of it, the day the articles came out. Not that they themselves would read tabloids, but Izzy's friends and Jace's coworkers might. Magnus' friends were used to having rumours about Magnus floating around, so Magnus didn't even bother with warning them.
It was only when Catarina came by to have Madzie stay with them a couple of days later that they realised that maybe it hadn't stayed as innocent as they had hoped. Apparently one of Izzy's friends had recognised Izzy's "hot brother" in the picture and had started sharing with her friends. Soon the rumour mill had caught wind and only a day later a reporter had come to ask questions. This meant they now knew the names of Alec's siblings, the fact that Izzy was a student and that they were definitely poor. It fortunately did dispel the idea that Alec wasn't actually Magnus' bodyguard as it became known that all the Lightwoods were experienced martial artists.
Catarina had read the second series of articles and had laughed heartily at the expansion of the cinderella story that portrayed Alec as a charity case or gold digger and Magnus as either white knight or sugar daddy. It did, however, do nothing to change her mind about Alec and Magnus' previously proposed plan to take Madzie out for dinner that evening to expose her to more new situations. All three were excited about it, so why the hell would they not.
Reporters still had no idea where they lived, fortunately, so with Madzie in between them they could just walk around. After having overcome her dislike for green beans Madzie was a pretty easy eater. She liked most things that she tried for the first time and still held her peculiar love for cauliflower that really no one could explain.
They were on their way to the restaurant when Jace texted with the question if Alec could call for a moment. Alec saw no harm in it and let Magnus and Madzie get a little bit ahead of him as he called Jace. Max had expressed some issues with his sight and Jace thought they should take him to the optometrist. But as his guardian, Alec would be responsible and should probably be present. It was really a minor thing, but Alec was very happy that Jace called him for this. It made his siblings feel less far away and showed that Jace had maybe understood a little bit of Alec's feelings concerning Max.
The sound of the revving engine registered in Alec's ears before he saw the movement out of the corner of his eyes. Before he really knew what he was doing his phone dropped from his hand and his legs were propelling him forward at a speed he hadn't known was possible before. The angry headlights on the silver car seemed to turn into a vicious grimace as it fixed its trajectory straight for its target.
Magnus and Madzie had no idea. They were happily looking at the shop window. Alec could feel the blood pounding in his head as his feet hit the concrete in his mad dash to get there in time. To save them from the rapidly approaching car that was clearly intent on ending their lives right then and there. Alec was not about to let that happen. Not even close.
'Magnus!' The man instantly responded to Alec's panicked cry. As he turned to see Alec closing in, his eyes also spotted the movement behind him. It was too little too late.
Alec launched himself off. His hands colliding with Madzie's back and Magnus' shoulder mid air, but as he pushed them out of the path the car that had not slowed down barrelled into his path. His hip connected with the windshield and Alec rolled over the top of the car, before tumbling off the side. His shoulder hit the pavement painfully before he rolled head over heels, unable to catch or stop himself. He came to a stop, flat on his back at the same time the car met with the brick wall that had been behind them.
