We're finally diving into the Malec! As should be obvious with the cover, this piece is Alec-centric, which of course means there'll be a good dose of Malec. We've also finally gotten to canon-time. While of course things won't happen as they do in canon, that should be pointed out.
While I won't recommend reading this fic if you haven't read the other two parts in the series, if you decide to do it anyway, these are some of the things you Really Need to Know!: In "The Burning Tower" the original, 18yo Clary changes her mind at the last moment, and instead of creating a rune that'll help her kill Jonathan, she creates one that throws her back in time (eight years, give or take). She appears in her older body, completely separate from the younger Clary of that time, tracks child-Jonathan all the way to Edom and rescues him from Lilith's tower. She gets him back to NY, where they come across Magnus, who promises to look after him, and the younger Clary just before the older one vanishes. In "The Girl on Fire", 10yo Clary has been dreaming about the boy captive in a burning tower, when she dreams about an angel rescuing him. She makes some drawings about it, and when Jocelyn sees them she takes the girl to Magnus, demanding that he do something about her memories. In the end they concoct a plan, leading Jocelyn to believe that Magnus has done a new spell that makes it so that if Clary ever sees the Downworld she'll dismiss it. In truth, she's just pretending. She's then offered a full-ride to a prestigious boarding-school in Upstate NY: New Salem Academy, where all its students are part of the Shadow World in one way or another. She attends there for seven years, along with Chris (Jonathan, who's since changed his name). The two get the chance to be a family, grow up together, meet people, make friends... The day she turns 18, Clary moves out of Jocelyn's apartment and in with Chris, one floor bellow Magnus, whom by then they both see as their Papa. This fic takes off an unspecified amount of time after that (a few weeks, maybe a couple of months or so).
A warning for Bad Parabatai Jace Wayland, and Bad Sibling Isabelle Lightwood. I will say that I have a very... particular opinion about certain people and their actions, especially in the first season. You might not agree with me, and that's fine, but I hope you all will respect that we each have a right to our opinions on the matter. If the way I handle certain characters is a deal breaker for you, I'm sorry but I understand.
Dreamcast: Wilmer Valderrama as Carlos Angelborn, Emily Browning as Silbhé and Tom Hiddleston as Lucas.
The Exiled Protector
Alexander Gideon Lightwood spent the first twenty-three years of his life being the dutiful son, the courageous shadowhunter, his loyalty to the Clave uncontested; then… then he realized that the world wasn't quite like he was taught. He realized that things weren't so black and white. That the monsters sometimes weren't entirely monstrous (sometimes not at all), while some people that would at first sight appear perfectly normal, would seem to be 'good', could end up being far more terrible than anyone with demon blood. He learned that there was a lot he didn't know, terrible secrets the people around him kept and that… that changed everything. Alec Lightwood then was left having to decide if, knowing all he now did, he could go back to being the dutiful son, the courageous shadowhunter, the man loyal to a leadership that neither appreciated him, nor really wanted him in the end.
He made his choice. And he bore the consequences with the same pride, valor and commitment he ever gave everything else in his life…
When it's all said and done he's left standing on the sidewalk, a duffel bag with several changes of clothes and personal possessions at his feet, bow and quiver strapped to his back, stele in hand and… that's it. He's lost everything: his career, his family, his life…
"Portal for the 'pretty boy'…" A voice quips, humorously.
Or maybe not.
xXx
When Alec first met the Banes he wasn't sure what to think of them; then again, he's pretty sure they didn't know what to make of him either, so maybe that's okay. It started with a report from Lindsay about a failed mission to Pandemonium. An unsanctioned mission, lead by Jace, taking advantage of his status as Head of Field Operations… again. The blonde was supposed to be his parabatai, yet Alec swore he was the cause of more headaches than anyone else, even Izzy! His sister could be… difficult. But most of the issues he had regarding her were concerning things like her preference for revealing clothing and high-heels; which, her proficiency in battle made most complaints irrelevant. As for her choice to associate with downworlders… Alec had never seen the issue, as long as they weren't criminals, and she wasn't betraying her own people to them. And he knew Izzy would never do that. While she might not buy into the older generation's rhetoric, she was too loyal to their father and to the Clave, to even think of something like that. Jace on the other hand… he shared Izzy's penchant for associating with downworlders, and shamelessly bedding any and all females who might show the slightest bit of interest. The problems were with everything else: the way he couldn't be counted on to handle basic training because he got so into things, became so obsessed with continuously proving he was the best, that he hurt them more than he trained them (too many trainees had requested transfers because of that, until Alec got someone else to share the duties with Hodge. Then there was the way he went through clothes, weapons and tools; far more than any other three shadowhunters put together (Alec had gotten to the point where he started docking his pay, otherwise they wouldn't have been able to afford it; Jace either didn't notice or didn't care). And then there were his abuses of power: the way Jace would make up missions, change patrol times and schedules as was convenient to him (some times the changes were minimal and didn't affect anyone much, other times he got people complaining about the need to change their own plans because of it; and twice his actions had gotten them dangerously close to causing a real problem with one or another Downworlder faction).
His latest actions were just another example of such things. Alec had tried to call Jace on it, to make him understand why it was so wrong, but it was like Jace always had the 'perfect' excuse for his actions; and if he didn't he was more than willing to bullshit, and even use their status as parabatai to buy himself some favor with him, and the worst part is that, like an idiot, Alec always fell. He always went and dealt with the issues, smoothed things over, made sure all would be well. He knew he wasn't going to be able to keep doing it forever. Sooner or later Jace (perhaps even Izzy) would do something that Alec wouldn't be able to bail him (her/them) out of. But while a part of him knew that, the part of him that was a brother (and a big brother at that!) that could still remember his father introducing him to newborn Isabelle, telling him:
"You're a big brother now Alec, and as such, it's your duty to always protect your siblings. Always. You understand?"
And of course Alec understood! He was there for first Izzy, then Max and even Jace. Was there to help them, protect them, console them… he didn't know how to do anything else! Anything less than that! But now, perhaps for that very reason, his siblings had come to believe that their actions didn't have consequences; that things like rules, laws and protocols were optional and not… well, the laws!
Alec had no idea how to deal with that mess that just kept growing and growing… he did know one thing though. And that was that he needed to go and try and smooth things over… again. Even if his siblings (he'd read Raj's report, Jace might have lead the whole thing, but he wasn't alone, and one of his 'team' was Izzy), didn't manage to get into Pandemonium, he had no doubt that more than one individual would have seen them, he had to go and make sure that they all knew that things were in order and the shadowhunters weren't trying to threaten the Downworld's better known sanctuary.
It was the biggest issue they were dealing with. The reason why the so-called mission failed; and he could hardly believe his siblings were so foolish to not realize the mess they were causing! Pandemonium was considered a sanctuary because it was warded, no one knew how exactly, but basically it meant that if anyone had the intent to harm someone, whether downworlder, mundane, shadowhunter, anyone at all, they couldn't enter. Alec really didn't want to think what his siblings and their team had been thinking for the wards to have refused them entry… And once he got thinking about it, shouldn't they have known about the ward already? Alec knew they'd gone to Pandemonium before, to dance and drink and such. They had to be aware of the fact that it was a Sanctuary, of the wards in the place, right?
In any case, that's how Alec found himself making the trek to Pandemonium that particular Saturday night. He made a point of leaving his bow and quiver of arrows, as well as the single seraph-blade he'd chosen to carry, in one of the special lockers in a room off the nightclub's main entrance. Securing it with a locking rune drawn with his own stele (the lockers had mundane locks too, but the werewolf-girl in charge didn't bat an eye at his own security measure, clearly he wasn't the first to make such a choice), which he slipped back into his pocket; he also had a small knife concealed in one of his boots. It was just in case of an emergency, as he wasn't there looking for trouble, the whole opposite in fact, so he had no trouble stepping into the Club.
He walked straight to the bar, where he got a club soda with lime, the only non-alcoholic drink he knew that wasn't too obvious, thus it being less likely to make him stand out.
"Anything else, shadowhunter?" The bartender (a seelie, by the looks of it) asked him.
"If the owner is available I'd like to speak with him, if not, just let him know a representative of the New York Institute would like an informal meeting and I'll come back when they're free." Alec requested just before taking the first sip of his drink.
It was a bit more acidic than he preferred his drinks, but considering that anything alcoholic sold in a Downworld bar was liable to be far stronger than what he was used to… he made do. There was no reply to his request, but he didn't expect one anyway. Jace had already made a mess of things, and while technically speaking nothing had happened, Alec would rather be safe than sorry. Also, he knew that if he really wanted to show himself to be different from Jace, to show that he respected the Downworld, it started right there, with requesting a meeting, rather than trying to make demands (which he knew would have never worked anyway).
It's almost two hours later that a server approaches him, telling him that the boss is willing to see him for a short, informal meeting, and he's to go to the VIP section. Which Alec does right away. A look earlier had showed a cordoned, slightly elevated area on one side from the dance floor; with big couches and low tables, one of the seats just a tiny bit higher than the others, serving as a throne of sorts. Upon his arrival the area had been clearly full, with a caramel-skinned, dark-haired man in tight leather pants, boots and a sparkly royal blue shirt tucked into the pants but completely unbuttoned; the many chains and necklaces of different lengths emphasizing his chest. There was also blue and a good amount of glitter on his spiky hair and face. He was, in all, probably the most… flamboyant man Alec had ever seen… he was also probably the most gorgeous… and he really didn't have time for that!
Unlike earlier, the VIP section was mostly empty when Alec got there. The gorgeous man from earlier was still on the throne, though most of the partiers that had kept him company earlier seemed to be long gone. Only two people remained. A young woman, perched on a stool, she was dressed fully in black: a strapless top, jeans and boots, with bright green eyes and wavy red hair cascading down her back and over her shoulders. Her only piece of jewelry a long platinum chair with a crystal pendant. The absolute lack of color in her attire served to bring out all her colorful tattoos: wings on her back, fairies and stars on one arm, flowers and birds on another, and something that looked like black and white wings arranged in a yin-yang symbol with a fiery background, above her chest. The other individual was a young man, sprawled lengthwise on one of the side-couches, with blue-green eyes and short red hair; he looked almost modest in his own white button-up with rolled up sleeves, black-jeans and boots ensemble… if it weren't for how absolutely thin and rather transparent the shirt actually was. Enough to make it obvious that he too had ink on him; unlike the girl his wasn't as colorful, mostly back, with a bit of color here and there (like on the flames behind the yin-yang, the only tattoo that seemed to be identical to anything on the girl), he also had a hell of a lot more. Alec had seen some tattooed mundanes in passing before, even a few downworlders, but never someone so heavily tattooed.
Something else Alec noticed was that while the two young people (the girl looked no older than Izzy, perhaps even younger, while the boy might be about Jace's age, perhaps older, but still younger than Alec himself) might look perfectly at ease, even distracted, Alec was entirely sure that if he were to make the slightest wrong move (in their eyes) either one or both of them would be on him in less than a second.
When he finally stood in front of the man on the leather 'throne', the low table still in between them, Alec couldn't help but notice his very intense stare. Was the man… was he ogling Alec?!
"Sir…?" Alec called hesitantly, not quite sure how to react to that, and fighting very hard not to blush. "I'm Alec Lightwood, Acting Head of the New York Institute."
"Lightwood?" The young man on the couch actually raised his head at that.
"What brings the current leader of the local shadowhunters to our neck of the woods?" The young woman questioned before the boy could say anything else.
"Well, first of all I'd like to apologize in the name of my people for any issues their actions yesterday might have caused." Alec explained formally. "I assure you measures are being taken to try and keep such things from happening again." Starting with officially demoting Jace, to ensure he'd never be able to 'create' a mission again. "I know you have no reasons to believe me. Though I swear on the Angels I had no knowledge of what they were planning until after the fact. They were following some leads related to an issue we've been having, with mundanes being drained of blood and said blood going missing. It's a concerning case, as the mundanes are over half a dozen by now; and that's the number of bodies that have actually been found, we cannot know for sure if there might have been more victims whose remains just haven't been found. It's gotten to the point that the mundane authorities have started to investigate. The case is priority for that very reason. We need to solve it before anyone in the mundane police finds anything pointing to the Shadow World." He shook his head. "In any case, had I known what they intended to do I'd have been the first to tell them there was no way Pandemonium could be involved."
"So sure are you?" The boy challenged.
"I am." Alec nodded calmly.
At first no one responded to that, and Alec could almost feel the tension in the air, until…
"Oh… I like you pretty boy!"
Then, as if the words were some kind of sign, Alec noticed the way the other two just… relaxed. The young man dropping back onto the couch, while the young woman sat back a bit more comfortably on the stool.
"Oh, by the way," The man went on. "I am Magnus Bane, High Warlock of Brooklyn. And these two delinquents," He chuckled at the snort from the boy and the dramatic cry from the girl. "Are my children, Chris and Clary."
The boy, Chris, barely raise his hand the slightest bit in acknowledgment, while the girl, Clary, raised her own and even waved with a bright smile.
"Now, to celebrate!" Magnus called as he snapped his fingers.
A tumbler with some kind of amber-colored drink appeared onto Alec's hand so abruptly he almost dropped it. He only managed to keep hold of it in the last moment, as he noticed that a similar one had appeared on Magnus's hand; his children had completely different drinks though: Chris a thinner but taller glass with a completely transparent drink with green leaves inside it, while Clary's glass had a v-shaped bowl with a long stem underneath while the drink was pink and dusted with what looked like cinnamon on the top.
"Cheers!" Magnus called loudly as he took a long drink from his glass.
Alec hesitated just for a moment before taking the smallest sip. He tried to hold back his reaction, he really did but it was just…
"Not your style?" Magnus asked, pensive. "What's your poison then?"
"I… I don't…" How was he supposed to explain that the only alcohol he ever drank was Idris's wine, and that was always watered down?
"Lets see, nothing hard, doesn't seem like your speed. Bitter? No! You're too sweet for that." As Magnus spoke wisps of royal-blue magic twirled around his fingers, almost dancing, and Alec couldn't help but be fascinated by the whole thing. "So sweet probably isn't a good idea either… I know! How about a bit of both?"
The glass on Alec's hand disappeared, with a new one appearing almost instantly. This one was different though, the crystal completely smooth, the glass itself rounder; while the drink inside was a very light brown, with hints of darker, almost the color of chocolate, in swirls, there was also what looked like chocolate shavings on top. Hesitating very briefly Alec finally took a small sip, which was almost immediately followed by a bigger one. It was delicious! Like a mix coffee (a bit bitter, yet at the same time creamy and with just enough hint of sweetness), the alcohol did pack a punch, more than he preferred if he was entirely honest, but the taste that followed it was like the richest dark chocolate…
"And we have a winner!" Magnus was obviously delighted by his reaction to that drink. "Now, how about you have a seat, pretty boy, and we'll talk about how we can help each other?"
Alec sat, even as he wondered if Magnus would ever stop calling him 'pretty boy'; he had a feeling the answer to that was no…
That was the first, but far from the last time they met.
xXx
After hearing everything they knew about the missing mundanes, realizing that it was far worse than the shadowhunters believed it to be, and making plans for exchanging any important information they might find, Alec returned to the Institute, where he immediately called Carlos Angelborn to his office. An average shadowhunter, Carlos wasn't the kind to stand out, with honey-brown eyes, dirty-blonde hair and tanned skin; what made Carlos stand out, in a way, was his status as an Ascendant. Part of the last generation to have graduated from the Academy before its forced closure upon the loss of the Mortal Cup. Carlos was the last mundane to drink from the Cup in order to become a shadowhunter. Also, because he didn't stand out in any particular way he hadn't been offered an invitation to join any of the established shadowhunter families; and so he'd been given the surname of Angelborn. Most Angelborn sought to join families, if they couldn't convince them of adopting them, marriage was always a possibility. It'd been known to happen, especially with families that had only daughters, who wanted to ensure their own family name was carried on onto the next generation. Carlos stood out in that he didn't seem to care about such things. Alec didn't think he'd ever sought to make any such deals, content to remain as he was, an Angelborn. Alec didn't really care, he was a good soldier, nothing extraordinary, but then he didn't need to be; he was a decent fighter, organized and loyal, that was enough. Also, with him having been mundane, who better to help Alec with this new investigation?
So he made Carlos his lead investigator for this particular project, explaining that he'd answer to no one but him about it. He also gave free-reign to Carlos to reach out to sources, as long as he didn't risk revealing the Shadow World to mundanes. Alec was actually kind of hoping Carlos would end up working with some of the Downworlders who were involved with law enforcement and who Magnus Bane cited as his own sources; he didn't say that though as, if such a thing happened, he wanted it to be natural and not because he forced it. At least he was sure Carlos would be perfectly professional and not offend anyone, not Downworlders, or mundanes; it was one of the issues he kept having with some of his people, especially those belonging to the oldest families (the same who considered themselves 'purer' than those who might have ascended, some even had been known to refer to the Angelborns as 'dregs'; which, Alec was doing his best to put a stop to, punishing them for disrespect, insubordination if they did it again after he first ordered them to stop. Still, it wasn't easy).
The second time he came across the Banes, it wasn't exactly planned. It was his day off, and Alec decided to check out some of the spots where the mundanes had disappeared; particularly the one the NYPD seemed to believe might have been the first: Jocelyn Fray, she'd disappeared in late August. What made her case different from all the others was that her apartment was a disaster zone, it'd also been set fire to, badly enough that very few things survived. According to Carlos one of the detectives in the precinct insisted that Fray had nothing to do with the case, and there truly was no hard-proof that the woman had even been home at the time of the invasion. The lead detective, Messer, kept her case on the board because the owner of the building, who'd lived in the other apartment, had died there, all her blood drained. Messer also seemed to believe that the only reason Garroway insisted otherwise was because he was somehow involved with Fray and didn't want to believe her dead (as thus far none of the people they'd connected to the case had been found alive).
The building looked mostly alright from the outside, was the first thing Alec noticed. Making sure his glamour was in place, and using a window to avoid the doors sealed with police-tape the shadowhunter slipped into the building. The ground-floor held a shop of some-kind, there were some clearly truly magical objects, but most seemed to be just mundane stuff, the kind they liked to use when they pretended to believe in magic. Both apartments were absolutely trashed, though only the one on the second floor, Fray's apartment, showed signs of there having been a fire. What called Alec's attention most though was when he sensed something familiar, which was confirmed when he found a small, almost invisible rune carved high on the door's frame. He'd already known the woman found dead in the other apartment (the first official victim): Dorothea Rollins, had been a warlock… and apparently Jocelyn Fray was a shadowhunter…
After slipping back out of the building Alec was walking around, trying to comprehend what his discovery might mean for what was going on. If it was in any way significant at all. Just how many of the 'mundanes' who'd been drained of their blood, hadn't been mundanes at all? Was that important? And if so, how much? Fray seemed to have been the only shadowhunter to go missing; but she wasn't one of his, Fray wasn't a shadowhunter surname! Was she descended from exiles? A lost one? Also, Carlos had mentioned her having a daughter, one who'd moved out days before Ms. Fray went missing. No one knew where she'd moved to exactly…
He was completely lost in his thoughts when a voice called:
"Well, what have we here?! What's such a pretty boy doing at my door?"
Alec's head snapped up instantly, even as the conscious part of his brain was left scrambling, trying to comprehend that it was really Magnus Bane he was hearing… That the warlock was standing there, in a burgundy silk shirt with the top-half buttons undone, blue jeans, black boots, a number of necklaces and rings on him; it was tame in comparison to the previous time Alec saw him, but then again, they weren't in a nightclub. Still, his hair looked carefully done, with strands on the same color as his shirt, and his makeup and nails too clearly done to match. Alec's throat suddenly felt very dry…
"You live here?" Alec eventually blurted out. "I didn't know."
He almost wanted to smack himself. Magnus himself seemed a bit taken aback by that and maybe even… disappointed? Did he expect Alec to know where he lived? Did he believe Alec would have investigated him? Want him to…?!
"Well, since you're here now…" Magnus was the first to recover. "Drink?"
"I… sure," It's not like he had anything better to do. "Why not?"
He learned more about the Banes that day. Magnus is the High Warlock of Brooklyn, which means more than most might expect. It's no joke, being one of the leaders of the warlock faction. The mention of Brooklyn is only because that's where his residence is located, it's included in his title to make it easier for those who might need him, to find him. That's apparently one very important part of being a High Warlock, they have to always be available for their people. There are in total 9 High Warlocks in the world, some of the most powerful of their race. Their territories aren't determined by extension of land (like with mundanes) or by things like ley-lines and power nexuses (which is what shadowhunters use to determine where to build their Institutes); but rather by their people, the warlocks, their power. For example, Europe has a single High Warlock, he lives in the forest of Romania, as most of the warlocks in that continent reside in Eastern Europe, the Spanish Inquisition and other such 'events' having long since driven many of them away from other places. It's not that there aren't warlocks in countries like Spain, Portugal or the UK, but their numbers are fairly low, and not enough for the land to react to their presence, to make a High Warlock necessary. Asia on the other hand has three High Warlocks, as one works solely in China-Mongolia, while the High Warlocks of Nepal and Tokyo handle the rest of Asia. Magnus might be known as the High Warlock of Brooklyn, but his territory was in fact quite a lot bigger than that, most of North America, in fact.
He learned some things about the younger Banes too. They were Magnus's adopted children, which was obvious enough (everyone knew that warlocks couldn't have kids!). They lived in their own apartment, a floor bellow Magnus's. Chris was a Tattoist, he had a shop of the first floor of the building, all his clients were downworlders. Apparently he'd learned the basics from a mundane tattoo artist, then adapted what he learned in order to be able to tattoo downworlders; working around things like the seelie's issues with ferrous metals, the vampire's issues with certain substances and iconography, and such. Clary was an artist, was supposed to start at the Brooklyn Academy of Art, but when several warlocks disappeared in the span of a week, half of them being found dead shortly afterwards, she decided not to go.
"I tried to tell biscuit that it wasn't necessary." Magnus admitted. "I never wanted my children, any of them, to give up on anything because of me…"
"I'm sure she prefers to give up on a class than on you," Alec couldn't help but be blunt.
"Yeah that's… that's kind of what she said." Magnus admitted quietly.
"Do you know who's behind it all?" Alec asked at some point.
"I have my suspicions, nothing more." Magnus said after pondering on it for several very long seconds. "It's the kind of thing… I'd rather not predispose you to anything darling and… I have a feeling this is the kind of thing you'll only truly believe when you get there yourself."
When… not if. Which meant that at least for Magnus it was more than just a suspicion. Still, Alec understood, somewhat. So he didn't insist. Instead he planned what things he should research in order to better understand everything. Starting perhaps with finding out exactly how many of the 'missing mundanes' weren't mundanes at all, and… and who exactly was Jocelyn Fray.
While it was never said, Alec knew from the start of their talk, that most of it would never make it past him. There was no doubt that he was learning things the Clave would kill to know… they were also things that, Alec knew, they'd take advantage of in any way they could. He wouldn't allow that. Alec couldn't have known it at the time, but that was when he took the first step, onto a whole new path, a whole new life…
xXx
Valentine Morgenstern's alive. That… wasn't what Alec had been expecting, at all, but it made sense. In a terrible, almost terrifying, kind of way. The last Uprising had been bad, so very bad, for both Shadowhunters and Downworlders, but it was supposed to be over. Valentine and his Circle were supposed to be gone. Dead! Except they weren't, on either count. Granted, no one had actually seen Valentine just yet at that point, but with how organized the Circle members who'd been seen thus far were, Alec never doubted that there had to be someone leading them; and with the things he'd been reading regarding the Circle, Valentine didn't strike him as the kind of man who liked sharing power with anyone. Also, finding out that Jocelyn Fray was in reality Jocelyn Morgenstern well… the woman had been hiding as a mundane for a reason; if her intent had been solely to hide from the Clave, she'd have had a much easier time of it moving to any city without an Institute, or even just staying away from the Downworld… instead she'd chosen to live in the city where the second largest Institute in North America (and the 4th in the World) stood, with a warlock as neighbor (and landlady). While Ms. Fray probably didn't want the Clave's attention, she clearly feared something or someone else more, enough to want some level of protection from the Shadow World… and who could be more of a danger to her than the husband she abandoned and presumably betrayed shortly before his greatest battle (before his supposed defeat and death)?
There was also the fact that Ms. Fray hadn't chosen to live in the same city where just any Institute, big or small, stood, but the New York Institute, the one being lead by two other 'former' Circle Members. That was yet another shocking piece of information that he had to deal with. Learning that Robert and Maryse Lightwood had been Valentine's followers. Alec wasn't sure what was greater: his horror, it's not that he'd ever thought his parents were this wonderful and just Good people, he'd even come to terms with the fact that they were terrible parents years ago, but even then, he never expected them to be monsters! Then there was his anger, his absolute fury, at the realization that the name and honor and prestige Maryse was always insisting they had to uphold, that she made him (all of them really) believe they were tarnishing with even the smallest mistake they might make, had been long since tarnished, utterly ruined, and it was she and Robert who destroyed it! His cold rage at the realization that the Clave knew, and not only they didn't punish the Lightwoods, but they gave them control of an Institute, of one of the largest, most powerful Institutes in the world! His sadness, as he understood that the Clave didn't care, they didn't condemn Valentine for his actions against the Downworld, but for going against the Clave itself, chances were most of them even agreed with the madman's insane beliefs! Which in turn made him realize that his dream of future alliances, of one day there being a united Shadow World never stood a chance…
"How can you even stand to look at me?" There was so much self-loathing and despair in his voice, he knew it, couldn't help it.
"Well, I've told you before you're very pretty, darling…" Magnus began in a joking tone, though when he realized that wasn't going to work he shifted gears and turned serious. "I knew from the very first day that you're not your parents, Alexander."
"Wha…?" The shadowhunter wasn't expecting that.
"Don't you remember?" Magnus asked him. "You came to apologize for the actions of your men, requested a meeting rather than trying to demand one, you've always been willing to work with us… I know Maryse and Robert Lightwood, trust me darling, you're nothing like that."
For perhaps the first time in his life the idea of being nothing like his parents didn't fill Alec with trepidation, didn't make him feel inferior, instead it seemed like the highest compliment Magnus (or anyone else really) could pay him.
"I don't know what to do Magnus…" Alec finally admitted.
"Do about what darling?" Magnus seemed honestly confused.
"Any of it? All of it!" Even Alec didn't seem to know how to reply to that exactly. "I've been trying to tell Izzy and Jace about what I found but they're so busy being angry at me for their disciplinary notes and Jace's demotion… They won't even talk to me!" And it was driving Alec nuts. "Jace never even liked being Head of Field Operations!"
No, he hadn't. But Jace being Jace, he hated it not having been his choice; also, Alec was pretty sure that he hated learning that he couldn't rearrange patrols to suit him anymore. Izzy was likely to be angry for the same reason. That, and they'd see it as Alec being 'stuffy' and 'no fun'… it was like they couldn't remember that things like rules and laws existed and they applied to everyone, the two of them included! Not for the first time Alec wondered if perhaps he'd let his siblings get away with too much, for too long.
Magnus said nothing, what could he have said really? Instead he just conjured a mudslide for Alec, who hesitated for several seconds, thinking how he probably should return to the Institute, to his work… but what was the point? What was the point of making so many plans, of plotting out so many improvements, when he was never going to get to make them? So in the end he took the drink, downing half of it in one gulp before curling into himself a bit, as if seeking to occupy as little space on the armchair as was possible.
"I don't know what to do…" He admitted quietly, eventually, like it was the biggest secret ever.
Magnus was sure that, secret or not, it wasn't the kind of thing Alec often admitted to. His Alexander didn't strike him as the kind to ask for help very often… Or maybe, maybe it was that he was so unused to getting help when he did need it… The thought hadn't occurred to him before, but he knew Maryse and Robert weren't the best people, and the warlock doubted they'd been any better as parents, and judging by what little he'd heard of the siblings, it didn't seem like they were very useful either…
"You do your best, Alexander." Magnus told him quietly. "In the end, our best is the most any of us can really do."
"And what if our best isn't enough?" Alec asked, voice so quiet, so terribly vulnerable.
"Oh my angel…" Magnus moved slowly, hesitantly, crouching in front of Alec, taking his now empty glass and putting it on the closest table before taking hold of both of Alec's hands in his own. "Your best is enough Alexander… you are enough."
A shuddering breath abandoned Alec, in such a way that it was almost a sob.
Magnus said nothing more, and really, what could he have said? He just knelt there, offering what comfort and support he could. It was enough.
xXx
Alec didn't really know when exactly it was they went from acquaintances, to allies, friends… and eventually to being in love with each other. The shadowhunter's not blind, he knew from the moment he first saw Magnus that the warlock was a very handsome man. As exotic and flamboyant as his choice of attire might be, they suit him and Alec cannot help but feel breathless whenever he sees the other man in each new ensemble. Also, Magnus has always been one to flirt, from the very first 'pretty boy', but that did not mean Alec ever expected anything to come of it. After all, Magnus could simply be the kind of man who made a habit of flirting all the time, with everyone, it didn't have to mean anything special, right? Except, as Alec came to realize, while a lot of individuals (both downworlders and mundanes) might flirt with him, and while Magnus might be perfectly nice to them, he doesn't flirt back.
One day, they were in Pandemonium, on the VIP area; Alec was in a navy button-up with the top two buttons undone, tighter jeans than he'd usually go for, and a pair of brand new shiny black boots Magnus bought him and refused to take no for an answer. He was pressed against Magnus's side on his 'throne' (and he had no idea when exactly that became a thing either), when he vaguely noticed that the seelie server's flirting was way over the top. She kept bending over this way and that, as if trying to showcase her 'assets' as best she could. If questioned about it Alec would never be able to explain what he was thinking exactly, he just shifted slightly, noticing Magnus was looking straight at him for some reason and… it was the most natural thing for him to move his head just right and capture the warlock's lips with his.
Things got a bit insane for a minute or two as Clary cheered, crying out something about 'finally' (which seemed to make Magnus blush, just a bit), Chris groaned dramatically before saying they should get a room (which made Alec blush), the server for her part eeped, almost dropping the empty tray still in her hands, before apologizing and half running, half tripping away. Alec almost felt bad about her.
"She was flirting with you, you know?" Magnus commented offhandedly a few seconds later.
"What…?" Alec actually stopped from taking the next sip of his drink at that. "No way!"
"Oh darling, I've told you before, you're a very beautiful man…" Magnus pointed out.
"No more beautiful than you." Alec said in turn.
"By Heaven and Hell!" Chris cried out even more dramatically than before. "They're going to be even worse than before, aren't they?"
Clary's only response were her cackles of laughter.
Alec blushed, but before he could follow his natural instincts and look down, perhaps even curl upon himself, he noticed Magnus looking at him, absolute adoration in his eyes… his suddenly un-glamoured, golden-green cat eyes… And how could Alec, how could anyone, look away from something like that, from someone so extraordinary? So instead he bent forward and kissed Magnus again. And yeah, that was perfect. More than perfect even.
Alec was so perfectly happy, his relationship with Magnus almost seemed to make everything else, all his seemingly endless work at the Institute, the issues with his siblings that seemed to keep getting worse rather than improving, the growing tensions across the Shadow World… it all seemed to fall away the moment the two of them were together…
He was so perfectly content that even the sudden, unannounced, arrival of Robert and Maryse from Idris couldn't ruin it. Even when they basically pushed him out of the Head's office and took control of everything, undoing half of the things he was doing that they didn't like for whatever the reason and taking control and credit for the few they did like. It wasn't like Alec was surprised, he'd known it'd happen eventually. What did surprise him though was when Robert approached him while he was in the training room… He knew from the start it wouldn't go well, he just didn't know how bad it would end up being.
"I saw you demoted Jace from Head of Field Operations." Robert commented, trying and failing to sound casual. "And both he and Isabelle told me about the loss of privileges you punished them with. Why did you do that?"
Why did he do that… Not, what did They do to deserve it? That should have been enough to tell Alec how pointless any attempt to explain things was. Yet still he tried. He went as far as listing every single breach of protocol, disciplinary issue and other various problems his siblings had caused, half of which weren't even in their files! And even the ones that were, weren't as bad as they could (and should) have been, because Alec was always protecting them from the rightful consequences of their actions! And the few times he ever considered not doing so either one or the other, or in one memorable occasion the both of them, would seek him out to plead, cajole, and emotionally blackmail him if necessary! It's… most people might believe him a fool. He just thought that he loved his family, maybe too much. A sentiment that with every passing day became all the more clear none of them shared…
"They're just young Alec."
"Everyone makes mistakes, you must know that."
"We were all young once."
"No one was hurt, so what's the problem?"
Robert found a way to excuse each and every single thing Alec brought up. Though perhaps his worst response of all was: "Well, they must have had their reasons…"
So they must have had their reasons… but Alec didn't? Or Alec's reasons just were worth that much less than theirs?!
Alec would never know if him being in Pandemonium when things got messy ought to be considered the best or the worst kind of luck. The effects were certainly felt either way. When several teams of shadowhunters tried to break into Pandemonium late one Saturday night, there was what to mundane ears sounded like a fire alarm. It made the humans evacuate the building through both the main and emergency exits. Most downworlders for their part headed towards the cellars, where there were several doors leading to underground tunnels, their version of an emergency exit. A few downworlders insisted on staying behind, either to provide Magnus with some backup, or simply to prevent the shadowhunters from getting too suspicious, were they to find the club too empty.
Alec was among those who decided to stay, even though both Magnus and Clary offered to open him a portal wherever.
"Are you sure about this Alexander?" Magnus asked him quietly.
"I'm sure." Alec nodded calmly, he knew there would be hell to pay but after everything that had already happened, was still happening… he just couldn't bring himself to care. He did think of one thing though, as he turned to look at Clary. "Do you have a jacket on hand?"
"What, don't like my tattoos?" Clary taunted, a bit snappish
"I've no problem whatsoever with your tattoos, but thought you probably would prefer not to draw any unnecessary attention to your runes." Alec pointed out in a perfectly even tone.
All three Banes froze in unison.
"Your agility, strength, speed and precision runes flared when the alarm rang." Alec explained. "It was brief, but I happened to be looking at you right when it happened."
"You don't seem surprised." Chris said, head cocked to a side as he pondered that himself.
"About which part? The runes hidden in the tattoos? It's a good plan. Good way to go unnoticed for the most part." Alec enlisted things calmly. "That she's clearly nephilim and, this is a wild guess, you probably are as well? That one did throw me a bit but well, I know I have an uncle somewhere, probably. He chose derunement and exile when he fell in love with a mundane, but that doesn't mean he's stopped being a nephilim. If he has children, there's a very good chance they will be nephilim as well. And he's far from the only shadowhunter to have been exile in the last few decades, so the chances of there being at least a few people in the mundane world with nephilim blood is quite high." He didn't mention Ms. Fray, not even with the connection he suspected there might be between her and at the very least Clary; deciding it wasn't particularly important for the time being. "As for the whole, activating runes without a stele… Jace does it too sometimes, so while we've never been able to figure how it is he does it, or what makes it so he can even do something like that when no one else seemed able to, I know it is possible."
"You keep surprising me Alexander," Magnus declared eventually.
"In good ways, I hope." The shadowhunter quipped.
"The very best," The warlock said huskily as he kissed his boyfriend tenderly.
"No time for that," Chris snapped with a hint of a joke.
Intentionally using magic he summoned his sister's favorite jacket, a blue-leather one, which she slipped on swiftly, she also pulled her hair out of her ponytail for good measure, so the only tattoo that was visible was the one in between her collarbone and her chest: the winged-yin-yang. The siblings made a point to stare at Alec after that, as if waiting for him to comment on Chris using magic, the shadowhunter opened his mouth to say something, then closed it again.
"Later," he decided as he shook his head. "That is, if you want to tell me. I'd love to know, but I'm aware you owe me nothing so…"
"You're family," Chris said with a slight shrug. "We'll talk later."
And then he walked away. Like he hadn't just challenged Alec's entire worldview with that single phrase… So long Alec had been fighting, against the world and against himself, to earn the pride and approval of a family who, by the looks of it, would never give him either. He loved them so much, and for so long he kept trying to force himself to be who they wanted, in every way he could, until he could do it no more. And now he was realizing that it was never going to be enough… And to think that precisely now, when he was about to lose it all, to have someone else call him family… it was almost more than he could take.
It at least gave him the confidence to stand with the Banes when the doors to Pandemonium were opened and they came face to face with over a dozen shadowhunters trying with all their might to break in (and who, in the end, failed). Gave him the strength to look at his siblings straight in the eye as chaos broke out and lines were drawn in the sand. As choices were made that would change the paths all their lives would take from that day on…
xXx
Absolute insanity followed the shadowhunters' attempt at storming Pandemonium that night. Alec did his best to stay ahead of things, sending fire messages to all his contacts in Idris (which were more numerous and better positioned than most probably would have expected). It allowed Alec to fight back when he first had accusations of treason thrown his way, of 'colluding' with the Downworld, and then when Jace tried to blame it all on Magnus, paint it like he was inciting an Uprising or something else equally ridiculous.
"Please!" Clary scoffed when she heard about the whole thing. "If we wanted there to be an Uprising there would be one!" She pondered that, then revised. "Actually scratch that, there would have already been one, and it'd be over and done with by now!"
Thing is, Alec didn't doubt her for a second. If anyone in the Downworld had the kind of power necessary to pull all the factions together and make war against the Clave; and beyond that, to win, that was certainly Magnus Bane.
"I'm sorry Alexander," Magnus murmured quietly.
While Alec had tried to make it sound like it wasn't that important, he didn't hide the fact that he'd been demoted; it wasn't just about him not being Acting Head, or even the Heir any longer, but he wasn't even team-leader, nothing more than a soldier, in fact.
"You have nothing to apologize for Magnus, none of you do." Alec assured him. "I knew this was the most likely outcome, even before the confrontation in Pandemonium. The moment they tried to order me to do something that'd affect the Downworld, or when Maryse tried to arrange my marriage and I refused… it was always going to go this way."
"And your siblings…" Clary began, only to trail off when the look Alec gave her was answer enough. "I don't understand how they can do that…"
"Do what?" Alec asked, confused.
"Abandon you." Clary answered bluntly.
"Their not abandoning me." Alec shook his head. "They don't like my choices, which is no surprise really. We rarely agree and…"
"And you usually go along with them instead of standing by your choices." Clary finished for him. "Which really, the fact that you've chosen differently this time should tell them something!"
"Why are you pressing on this matter?" Alec didn't understand.
For all answer Clary turned her back on him, taking hold of her hair in both hands and pulling it up, revealing the one angelic rune that wasn't disguised by any sort of tattoo: a parabatai rune. Alec's eyes went wide. Though before he could even think to question on who had the other end of the bond, movement on the corner of his eye pulled his attention and he turned to see Chris pull the neckline of the white tank he was wearing, revealing on the opposite side of his chest from where his winged yin-yang sat, a parabatai rune.
"How…?" Even the shadowhunter wasn't quite sure how to finish that question.
"Clary and I first met when she was ten and I eleven." Chris began. "We're siblings by birth, but our birth-mother abandoned me when I was a baby because our biological father experimented on me and she couldn't handle it."
"What did he do to you?" Alec was horrified.
"Injected me with demon blood, before I was ever born." Chris answered as he dropped his glamour, letting his fully black eyes show. "She believed me a monster."
"But… warlocks have demon blood, they're not monsters!" Alec blurted out. "And… and…"
"He's not a monster, he's my brother, though our mother never saw it like that." Clary said, a hint of resentment at the mere memory.
"What happened then?" Alec asked, curious. "I mean, how did you come to meet each other?" He made a pause then added. "If you want to tell me, of course. I'd never presume…"
"Like Chris said the other day, you're family." Clary deadpanned. "We trust you."
And so they told him their story. About Chris's early life as Jonathan Morgenstern, being trained and molded into a weapon, until even Valentine began to fear him, and sent him to Edom to get rid of him. How Jonathan spent an unknown amount of time praying for rescue, and then hoping to die; only for an angel to show up one day and rescue him from Lilith's Burning Tower, getting him back to Earth, and to Magnus, who promised to take care of him… They also told him about the Frays' life as mundanes, about Jocelyn trying so hard to pretend the Shadow World couldn't touch her, her taking little Clary to Magnus so he'd take away whatever memories she might have of seeing it, of knowing it existed. And at first Magnus did it, knowing that Jocelyn would seek someone else if he refused, and the next warlock might not be as good, or as careful. Until he met Chris, and then he made a different call. They then tell Alec about the New Salem Institute, and about the years the siblings spent there (the shadowhunter couldn't help but comment on how fascinating such a place would be, and how much he'd have loved it, if he could have attended such a school, growing up). About them getting to finally be a family, to grow up together, making friends, making a life, becoming parabatai…
"That's why I press the matter." Clary concluded. "Because Chris is my parabatai, and I would never, ever, turn my back on him the way Wayland clearly keeps doing to you. That's not right. It's not how parabatai should behave." She breathed deep. "You deserve better than that Alec."
Whatever Alec might have been about to say vanished in an instant when the last sentence crossed the redhead's lips. He couldn't feel angry, or affronted when, in the end, she was just worried about him. It was like Chris had said before, they were family…
"When I was younger… I remember Robert would tell stories of him and his parabatai: Michael Wayland." Alec said in an apparent non-sequitur. "Especially when Jace and I expressed an interest in bonding as such. Jace was all about the glory, about he power, the battle prowess. Me? I just wanted someone I knew I could count on, always." He shook his head. "Back then, with all the stories and such, I never understood how it was possible for Jace's father to die and Robert not to feel… anything. And yet… I can barely feel Jace anymore. With every day that passes my sense of him gets dimmer and dimmer. I know that one day soon I'll stop feeling him entirely, and when that happens…"
"Don't say it." Chris snapped abruptly, surprising everyone, even his own parabatai. "Don't say you'll be alone. You won't. You'll still have us. I've told you before. We're your family!"
"Thank you…" Alec told him, because really, what else could he have said?
He was still terrified at what might happen when his and Jace's parabatai bond finally snapped, something he was sure would happen sooner or later. But at least knowing that whatever else might happen he wouldn't be alone, that did help.
xXx
It was Andrew Underhill who called Alec to inform him about the mission that had been carried against warlock Iris Rouse and her operation…
Alec never really planned moving out of the Institute, or in with Magnus, it just… kind of happened. While Alec did regret his demotion to a certain point, the Banes all seemed to make a concerted effort to ensure he wouldn't become too fixated, or depressed about it. Starting with his free time. In between regular patrols, training, and the paperwork and other duties that came with being Acting Head of an Institute the size of New York's, he hardly ever had free time in the past. When going back to being a 'normal' shadowhunter, that suddenly freed a great deal of his time. He'd never been the kind to enjoy inactivity, and while the first few days he filled that time with training, when the Banes realized what was going on, they made a point of calling him at all hours, and if he happened to be free, they would then insist that they needed him for whatever the reason. Until he stopped requiring excuses, or even any calls; whenever he didn't have patrols or regular training he would leave the Institute. Magnus's wards recognized him, allowing him into the flat the moment his hand touched the door. Even Chairman Meow liked him!
And so it happened that one night the dinner, drinks and chat went on for so long, and since he didn't have any early duties, Magnus asked him if he'd like to stay the night and Alec had no reason to say no. Hed never before slept so long, or so well. If there was one thing he'd regretted of the two times he and Magnus had sex before then, it was his inability to stay the night, as he knew he'd have been missed and back then that wasn't something he felt he could afford. He still had to leave earlier than he liked in order to be able to get back to his room in time to shower and change, as he hadn't planned to staying the night. So the next time he took a backpack with him with a change of clothes and some toiletries. Deciding that there was something to be said for things being 'out in the open' now. Of course at some point Magnus had the idea of them going 'out of town' for dinner, and when Alec tried to claim he didn't have appropriate clothing his boyfriend took it as an excuse to buy him some clothes. And to never stop doing it. Before Alec fully noticed he had not one but several drawers and even a section of the closet was full of his clothes, not to mention the toothbrush beside the sink, or his preferred toiletries in the bathroom.
On one memorable occasion when all three Banes happened to be busy at the same time (an oddity in and of itself) that was when he met the siblings' closest friends: Silbhé and Lucas. Silbhé it turns out is the daughter of a nephilim who had trouble taking her first rune and was sent to live as a mundane, while Lucas is the grandson of a seelie. Alec's biggest surprise on that front was when learning that Lucas is actually related to Meliorn, whom Alec knows as he and Izzy used to 'date'. Lucas is a talented jeweler, while Silbhé's a historian. Alec loved getting to know them, making friends for himself.
He wasn't really surprised that there were missions taking place that he wasn't aware of, that was to be expected after all. Still, he didn't expect what Andrew told him that particular day…
"Did you just say they have a warlock child?" Clary spat.
"They're keeping a child locked up in the Institute?" Silbhé was absolutely horrified, and no one could have missed the way her hand strayed to her lower belly.
It was still fairly early in the pregnancy, and she was just starting to show, though of course everyone in their little family knew and were doing their best to take care of her (without being too obvious, as they knew she wouldn't abide by them treating her like a delicate flower).
Magnus said nothing, but he was practically vibrating with fury.
"I say we burn them all down." Chris said, voice low, he didn't sound particularly angry, or even upset, which only made his words all the more terrifying.
"No!" Alec cried out, then hurried to elaborate, when all eyes turned on him, condemning eyes: "I'm not saying we should allow this to stand. But there are hundreds of people in that Institute, and they don't all deserve to die for the stupid choices of their leaders."
"You do know that 'Just following orders' is not an acceptable excuse, right?" Lucas asked him, steel in his voice.
"I understand what you're saying, what you need to understand in turn, is the differences in our cultures." Alec raised a hand before anyone could interrupt him. "I'm not justifying them. Not at all. What's happening is wrong. Many of the things the Clave has done and keeps doing are wrong. But you're condemning everyone over the actions of a few. And what I need you to understand is that it's not as simple as you're trying to make it sound. We… shadowhunters cannot just see that something is wrong and… and decide to do something to change it. We can't just choose not to follow an order. We're a military society. It's not just a matter of us being trained from an early age, it's… this is what and who we are." He turns to Clary. "Remember that time we talked about the differences between being a nephilim and a shadowhunter? And how I told you that, for most of us, there's no difference?"
"And I told you that nephilim is what we are, while being a shadowhunter is what you do." Clary finishes for him. "What does that have to do with anything?"
"I told you that you can see the difference because you didn't grow up like we do." Alec reminded her. "Our training… we don't just learn how to fight, or track demons, or such. We're taught to be like the angels: brave, loyal, and obedient…"
Several of them blinked at that, as if trying and not quite managing to grasp the implications.
"Free will is a thing, you know?" Clary asked, tone slightly off.
"If I told you a glass of water could kill you, you probably wouldn't believe me, because you've never been faced with such a thing." Alec pointed out. "Doesn't make it any less true."
He was, of course, talking about the water from Lake Lyn, which if drunk could make people hallucinate, go mad, or even die.
"Okay, so, no burning anything down." Lucas steps in. "What are we going to do then?"
"Not we, I." Alec corrected him.
It was a simple plan. As he was still a member of the NYI, even had a room there still, even if he hadn't spent a night there in a couple of weeks. So he knew he'd have no trouble getting in. He was hoping that either his name, his reputation, the rank he'd held until very recently or, if all that failed, his knowledge of the place, would allow him to find and reach the warlock child before anything could happen to them. No one seemed to like the plan too much, though Alec's surprise was great when they realized they were at least as worried about his chances to find the child, as they were about him being able to get the both of them out safely.
Clary was the one to offer him some help. In case he had any trouble getting out of the Institute with the warlock child. She handed him a crystal pendant.
"It's a portal shard." She pointed out, then pulled out her stele and drew a quick, small (and completely unknown to Alec) rune on the side of his wrist. "This is a signal rune. When you're ready, rub this thrice, either with a finger or just against bare skin, it'll send out a signal to us. Either Papa or I will then use the portal shard both as a beacon and to bypass the Institute wards and open a portal straight to you."
It was a sign of how much Alec trusted her, trusted them all, that he didn't question if it'd work. He just nodded in thanks and got on his way.
The first part of the plan went without a hitch. It was even easier than Alec would have expected. It was almost… as if the people in the Institute (those a part of him still saw as his people) had all decided to turn a blind eye to him as he walked past them, past check-points and into an area of the Institute that should have been out-of-bounds for him. When he made it to the detention area only to find the place empty… Alec wasn't surprised, exactly, though he was definitely upset, a tad angry, as well as infinitely disappointed. Still, he knew it wasn't the right time, so he pushed his emotions down as best he could and made his way to the basement, to the cells…
Alec's heart broke at the sight of the small child curled up in a corner of the cell. She was so small, and absolutely terrified.
Knowing that she must be afraid enough of shadowhunters already, and that his height would only make things worse, Alec made a point of keeping his distance, and crouching to at least seem a bit less imposing.
"Hey…" He called softly. "What's your name?" When that gave him no answer he tried a slightly different tactic: "I'm Alec."
He was extremely nervous. He knew that whatever everyone else might be doing, the basement would not remain empty forever. Sooner or later someone else would show up, someone would go for the girl, probably intending to interrogate her, and while Alec really didn't want to risk terrifying her further, he wasn't sure they had the time for him to get her to trust him… He was distracted just a bit when she pulled slightly at the scarf around her neck, it seemed to be a subconscious move more than anything else, though it still was enough for him to notice what looked like gashes on the side of his neck. Or maybe…
"Cool gills," He commented, as blasé as he could.
The girl stared at him, eyes wide, as if searching for something. Then, right as Alec was trying to decide if he should just take the risk and get moving already, she spoke up:
"I'm Madzie…"
It still took him longer than he'd have preferred for Madzie to relax enough in his presence to allow him to get close. And then they ran out of time.
"Look Madzie, I know you barely know me, there's no way I can really convince you to trust me." He told her as he heard the echo of footsteps, people were coming. "I want to help you. Get you out of here and to my friends, who'll keep you safe. But we need to get moving, now."
He offered her his hand, mentally calculating what else he could do, the chances that he might be able to just take her and carry her out of the cell and far enough before the shadowhunters caught up with them; particularly if she got scared enough for her magic to act up. The cell might be neutralizing her power for the time being, but that wouldn't last once they got out of it, and he didn't think even Magnus would be able to get a portal straight into one of the cells (they would not have been too secure if such a thing were possible…). And then Madzie took his hand.
They were halfway down a little used hallway when yelling, followed by the ringing alarm let him know that their, or at the very least Madzie's disappearance had been discovered. He'd hoped they'd be able to double back and go up the stairs before they were found but that that plan was shot the moment the alarm started ringing. What's more, the alarm meant that the Institute was sealed, getting out had just become much more difficult.
It was a matter of several seconds for Alec to consider his options, and decide on the one that had the highest chance of keeping Madzie safe…
"Okay sweetheart," Alec lead them to the end of a hallway and into an old, dusty office. "I need you to take this," he slipped the portal shard around her neck at the same time he rubbed the rune on his wrist thrice. "In a moment one of my friends is gonna open a portal and I need to go right through. Tell them Alec says to close the portal and that whatever happens they're not come looking for me. I need them to be safe."
"Alec…?" Madzie asked, she sounded so scared…
"Shhhh sweetheart, I promise you, you're going to be alright." He assured her.
As he said that the portal appeared on the far end of the room, at the same time they both heard loud footsteps echoing on the other side of the door, followed by someone trying to open it. Alec spun around, pulling out his stele and starting to draw locking runes, one after the other, as close together as he could, even interlocked if possible. He knew the tactic wouldn't last forever. But it'd at least give them a few very precious seconds.
"Go!" He told Madzie.
"Alec…" She sobbed, looking at the portal in front of her and then over her shoulder at Alec, she was really frightened. "Come with me."
"I cannot." He shook his head, he kept drawing runes as fast as he possibly could, though they were disappearing almost faster than he could draw. "You need to go. Go now Madzie!"
Madzie sniffed, but did as told, turning away from him and running straight into the portal. The shard around her neck allowing her to make it through and straight into Magnus's living room despite the fact that she'd never been there.
Several seconds passed and Alec was about to go crazy with fear that something might have gone wrong, until the portal finally disappeared. He exhaled, closing his eyes just for a moment, and then let his stele fall. He was tired, and he knew there would be hell to pay for what he'd done. But that was alright. He got Madzie out, and he knew Magnus and the others would keep her safe. Whatever happened to him, she was safe and that… that was worth everything to Alec…
xXx
There was no trial. Which frankly was something Alec preferred. He'd have hated to see the kind of sham the so-called trial would have been. He didn't know how long he spent in a cell exactly (two days? three? More?). Several people went in at different points to question him about the girl, about her whereabouts. Since there was no trace of the portal by the time Jace managed to break down the door to the old dusty office there was nothing there for them to track. They didn't have anything of hers they could use either. The portal shard had gone with Madzie, and Clary's signal rune vanished after being used, so there was nothing left they could use. And Alec himself gave them nothing. Not even when they threatened him with a formal 'interrogation' (which, he was quite aware the only reason it didn't happen was because of the Clave envoy still in the Institute, who was probably watching their every move; Robert and Maryse wouldn't want to risk looking bad in front of her). The only reason they could somewhat prove he was behind Madzie's escape was that he was the only one in the sub-levels at the time! (Conveniently, there was no security footage; and while he did worry about his people getting in trouble, there was apparently a scheduled maintenance for that afternoon, approved by Robert and everything). It was impossible to know if they'd intended to use that lack of security footage for their benefit in some way, if Robert had just forgotten about it… or if maybe, just maybe, the whole thing had been staged by his people. He felt proud of them and terrified for their sake at the same time.
The hardest part was perhaps, on his first day in that cell, when his siblings went into the room. Isabelle tried to appeal to their family-connection, to his love for her, tried to manipulate him in the very same way he'd seen her manipulate so many of her 'sources' and downworld 'friends'. He felt almost sick. Jace at least was too hot-headed to go down that route; though in the end that didn't make his own words hurt any less:
"I did my best, Jace." Alec tried to explain. "My best to look after all of you, to protect you, to ensure you'd be happy…"
"Then maybe Maryse is right and your best just isn't good enough." Jace snapped.
Alec doesn't know when his bond with Jace finally finished breaking, exactly. He does know it was gone by the time the door into that old, dusty office broke. He couldn't imagine having to hear those words while at the same time having to feel the kind of emotions he could read on his once-parabatai's face. He did wonder if Jace realized it. If he sensed the hole where their bond used to lay and understood what it meant. Or maybe… maybe he was so used to not seeing it, not caring about it, that it was all the same to him…
In the end the sentence was predictable. While he had been a bit nervous about the possibility of outright execution, especially when the accusations of 'treason' came up, he knew from the start it was unlikely to come to that. Even when Maryse informed him that he was being disowned (a desperate attempt to salvage what might be left of their oh-so-precious reputation); Alec was fairly certain it wouldn't come to that. His talks with Aline, Michael and several others weeks earlier had left him with the impression that he had enough of a reputation, especially among the younger, more open-minded generation, the Clave wouldn't risk making him into a martyr.
So, exile. It was the easy, predictable, sentence. Shadowhunters who were exiled, without the mercy of prior derunement didn't tend to live more than a few weeks, a month at most. Most of them didn't last even a week. Then again, he'd the theory that those who died soonest it was because they sought their own demise, hoping that dying in battle would redeem them of their crimes, whatever they might have been. Alec could imagine it all-too-easily; in a world where he'd never met the Banes, where he didn't have Magnus to call him beautiful, to kiss him like he was the center of his whole world; where he didn't have Clary teasing him and teaching him about being more than just a shadowhunter, or Chris telling him he's family… but he did have them, and that changed everything…
So when it's all said and done and he's left standing on the sidewalk outside the Institute, a duffel bag with several changes of clothes and personal possessions at his feet (the few that were left in his room, mostly all things Magnus would probably throw out rather than allow into their room), bow and quiver strapped to his back (the weapon was a gift from an old tutor and made expressly for him, bonded to him by name and blood in such a way that the angels themselves couldn't take it from him); and while the quiver might be empty, he knows how to make his own arrows (both wood and metal), if he can just get his hands on the right materials, and he has no doubt that either Magnus, one of his children, or one of his new friends would be able to help him with that); he even has his stele, as it's tradition in some families for shadowhunter children to make their own once they reach a certain age, to make sure the stele fits them precisely. Alec doesn't despair, he knows that whatever some people might think, this isn't the end, not for him. He might have lost everything: his career, his family, his life as he once knew it…
"Portal for the 'pretty boy'…" A voice quips, humorously; it's Clary standing just past the Institute's wards, probably glamoured in such a way no shadowhunter will think anything of her.
Alec cannot help himself, he rolls his eyes, even as a part of him cannot help but finish the previous thought still running through his head: he might have lost the life he once knew… but that was his old life, the life of the dutiful son, the courageous shadowhunter, the man loyal to a leadership that neither appreciated him, nor really wanted him in the end… that's not who he is anymore, nor will he ever be that lonely, sad little boy ever again. He's a man who knows his own mind, his own heart, who's made his own choices and has everything he ever wanted, everything he never dare dreamed of…
"Lets get out of here." He tells Clary, hoisting the duffel bag over the opposite shoulder from the one his weapons hang from.
He follows her to the end of the block, around the corner and straight through one of her portals, not looking back even once.
xXx
Hours later, it's past midnight but Alec's having trouble falling asleep. While making love with his gorgeous boyfriend's usually enough to both exhaust and relax him enough for him to sleep pretty deeply for the rest of the night (and even into the morning if he doesn't have to set the alarm too early), he just cannot make himself settle down. So much has happened… And surprisingly enough he could almost say that his exile was the least of it!
It wasn't just Magnus waiting for him when he came through the portal. He'll never forget the little warlock girl who squealed his name so loud the moment she laid eyes on him and proceeded to run straight to him, throwing herself into his arms and holding on like her life depended on it. She also refused to let go of him at all, even to go to bed, until he promised her (very solemnly) that he wasn't leaving and would be there when she woke up. Alec can hardly believe he's made such a strong impression on the child. He hopes that won't keep her from finding a family, a home. While there's a part of him that really wishes he could give her that, he knows it's not really possible. Really, warlocks must have rules or protocols or something for the adoption of their children. And who in their right mind would ever think that he, that a shadowhunter (even if he's now exiled from the Clave) will ever be the right person to give that beautiful little girl the kind of family and home she deserves? He can only hope that whoever ends up adopting her will allow him to visit every so often. There's something about Madzie… even though he just met her, he loves her. She's exactly the kind of girl he used to hope his daughter would be like.
Alec can still remember his conversations with Aline. The two have always been so close… she's one of two people he's ever come out to as gay (the other being her girlfriend: Helen). He can still remember the plan they made as teenagers, how they vowed that when he found a man he loved and who loved him, and who was willing to join in their plan, each of them would marry one of the girls. They'd all live together in the NYI, in the family-wing, the legally married couples would each have a single child to carry on their families, and away from the public eye they'd be with the people they truly loved…
"Alexander…?" Magnus's soft and slightly sleepy voice pulls him out of his memories. "Sayang, is everything alright?"
"Of course," The nephilim replies, mostly on automatic; and even as he says it he cannot help but reach with one hand to his opposite forearm, to the empty spot where his enkeli used to sit.
"You know, you didn't have to do it," Magnus murmurs. "Not yet, if you weren't ready. Not at all. We'd have never forced…"
"I know Magnus." Alec cuts him off, swiftly but gently. "I may not fully understand what Clary tried to explain, about the Angels, and binds and free-will, but if giving up the Enkeli means being better able to fight for what I believe in, for those I love…" he gave the warlock a look intense enough to make himself very clear. "Of the prices I could have been asked to pay, this one isn't even that great, or hard."
"Well, other things might be getting hard…" His boyfriend says huskily.
"Did… did you really just say that?" Alec actually coughs, even as he flushes bright red.
"Yeah, that was a bit much even for me. I don't even know what I was thinking." Magnus shakes his head, sighing, before raising a hand to grip his nephilim's chin gently. "Just remember, that whatever might change, you'll always be who you are: my gorgeous little nephilim, you'll always be Alexander Lightwood…"
"Trueblood." Alec corrects, and at Magnus's confusion elaborates: "Maryse and Robert disowned me in an attempt to distance themselves from… everything, before my sentence was formally announced. So I'm not really a Lightwood anymore."
"But the Trueblood name…"
"It's my mother's name, yes. Though she's not actually the one who gave it to me, nor can she take it from me. See, when my parents married there were quite a few Lightwoods, Robert was actually the second son of the youngest child of the Head of the Family. Maryse on the other hand was the heir of the Truebloods after her older brother chose exile when falling in love with a mundane. While we were all given the name Lightwood, it was in their contract that one of us would be the one to carry on the Trueblood name. Grandpa Adam chose me as his heir shortly before he passed away, when I was ten. I kept using the name Lightwood because it was just easier. But that's why, even though Robert could take the Lightwood name from me, neither him nor Maryse could take the Trueblood one. Even if she was once a Trueblood, she gave up the name and fully took the Lightwood one when most of the Lightwoods died and Robert became Head of that family." Alec's long believed that the only reason his parents had Max was to ensure they had a child who'd carry the Lightwood name. "For all intents and purposes I'm the current Head of the Trueblood Family… even if that's just me, really."
"How does that even work? With your exile and all?"
"No idea. I mean, most shadowhunters don't live long after being exiled. Whether they seek death or it just happens to find them…"
"Alexander…"
"Don't worry, I have no interest in dying." He exhales. "And truth is, all those shadowhunters, they probably had nothing outside of the Clave. No family or friends, no safe place to go to where they might actually be able to lower their guard, to rest… I have all of that, I have you, and Clary, Chris, Lucas, Silbhé…"
"And don't forget Madzie!"
"How could I?" There's so much feeling in his voice that Magnus cannot not notice it.
"Sayang…?" Magnus questions.
"She's just so… perfect. I almost… I wish she could be mine…"
"Who says she can't?"
"Magnus! Don't joke about this?"
"I'm not! Alexander…"
"Come on Magnus, who in their right mind would ever allow me, a shadowhunter! To be that perfect little girl's parent?"
"I would. And seeing how I'm the High Warlock of Brooklyn…"
"Is that… You're not joking, right? You wouldn't joke about something like this?"
"No, my love. I'm not joking." He snaps his fingers and a sheaf of papers appear on his hands. "Here, why don't we make it official right now and you can give the little sweet pea the good news in the morning?" he moves a finger like it were a pen and words start appearing. "Madzie… do you have a preference for a middle-name?"
"I… Abigail…" Alec practically blurts out. "It… she was one of the first shadowhunters, the first female in fact, Jonathan Shadowhunter's sister and… well, it's a barely known fact but…" As in, only the family knows it. "Both Jonathan and Abigail were Truebloods… the Truebloods have been nephilim since long before shadowhunters came to be, the line born from the union of a human woman and an actual angel called Ithuriel…"
"Oh…" Magnus's mouth drops open briefly in actual shock. "I'd heard the rumors… a long time ago. But I always believed they were just that. Rumors."
"That's the way the Truebloods have preferred it, for the most part. And really, the Clave would have never allowed so much as the suggestion that anyone might be in any way more nephilim than each of them were."
"It'd have been really dangerous if they'd known the truth."
"Yeah." Alec exhales.
"Well, this is almost ready," Magnus announces as he passes Alec the papers, followed by a pen he summons from… somewhere. "Just sign here and we'll be finished!"
Alec can barely stop the tears as he sees the name written right there: Madzie Abigail Trueblood. He's so happy he feels like he could burst! He can only hope Madzie will feel the same…
"She'll love it, I promise you." Magnus whispers, as if being able to read his mind. "I know you haven't been here the last few days Alexander, but if you heard the way that little girl talk about you. You're her absolute hero… She'll be delighted to have you as her dad…"
"As happy as I'll be to have her as my daughter…" Alec murmurs, heartfelt, as he signs his name at the bottom of the document.
Magnus is right of course. The next morning Madzie sees the papers and the first thing she does is jump straight into Alec's arms screaming: "Daddy!" at the top of her lungs. And Alec… he just smiles and hugs her back just as tightly. He has a family, and it's absolutely perfect. It'd seem that being exiled just… suits him.
So, what do you think?
For those still asking themselves what in the angel's name I was thinking when I decided to portray Alec's siblings the way I did... I'm not much of a fan of Jace, at all. While he does have his moments when he's really good, I think the times where he either turns his back on Alec, or simply isn't there for him far outnumber those. Izzy, I think she's better, but remember that I'm using their portrayal from early in S1, where I do believe they're both at their worst. Also, while I know a lot of their actions tend to be blamed on Clary (even I've done that, I'll admit). Truth is that Clary was the new girl. She might not have known the consequences of the things she was doing, and pushing for having done... Jace and Izzy on the other hand did know, and they went ahead and did them anyway! Then they were surprised when Alec was forced to make certain decisions... Also, on that same note, Izzy eventually did notice, which is what prompted her change. Here things didn't go that way, so there was nothing to make her see how wrong her choices were. Also, in a way was trying to be loyal, to Jace, trusting that sooner or later Alec would give in, as he'd always done... As for Jace himself, I do believe all the things that I wrote in the chapter itself. About the bad attitude, the emotional manipulation, all of it. I believe that if they broke the rules so easily when Clary 'asked', that had to mean they'd have done it even without her; and the way I see it, without her there's no excuse, no justification for their actions.
I decided to use my headcanon for the Trueblood family yet again. Also, Madzie as Alec's daughter, I just love those two as family! And of course, since Magnus is with Alec, he's part of the family as well!
There's more to come. The next piece in this series is still being written. Two or three scenes to go. Hope to have it ready for next week. We'll get to see the aftermath of the events from this piece. And as you might imagine, we'll be straying drastically from canon!
Please don't forget to comment/review, like/kudo, perhaps even favorite/bookmark. Full-sized fanarts are, as always, available through my DA page (I go by Princess-Lalaith there). Also, I give blanket permission to any and all who might want to create fanarts, podfics, translations, etc... just don't forget to give credit where it might be due, and to let me know so I can go see!
See you around!