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Alec sat with Magnus on a hill overlooking Alicante. It was opposite the Gard, and he could see tiny figures walking up and down. How simple their lives must have been before Valentine and his son.
He winced. For too long, those terms were thrown at Jace. If only…
If only what? His mind asked. If only Valentine wasn't such a manipulative bastard? If only we had been able to see past his seamless lies?
Magnus interrupted his thoughts. "Will you come to New York?"
Alec spluttered. "Uh…. what? Why? And how am I meant to get away from the demon?"
Magnus turned his green-gold gaze on him. "Isabelle's done it. She's living with me for the time being. I think it'll be easier than you think." He rubbed his arm reassuringly. "And as for why, I still need all of you in the same spot to transport you into Jace's world. It makes it much easier for me to split my energy if I'm directing it at the same spot."
Alec nodded. He couldn't help but feel a tiny flicker of doubt.
He pushed it down stubbornly. If that flicker grew any bigger, he'd end up endangering everyone, and it was best just to trust Magnus to do whatever magical thing he had planned. After all, he had centuries of experience. Alec couldn't even claim two decades.
A soft pressure on his arm roused him from his thoughts. He looked over at Magnus to see his worried eyes. "Do you just want me to try and bring Simon and Isabelle here? It'd be a bit of work with Simon, but he's just a mundane here."
Alec shook his head. "No, I get why it's easier to take Clary and I out of Idris."
"That doesn't mean you need to actually do it. It's certainly within my capabilities to get them here." Magnus kept his face carefully obstructed, but Alec saw the flicker of worry before he could stop it.
"It's fine." Alec insisted as he stood up, brushing the grass off his gear. "Do I need anything?"
Magnus stood with him, looking over Alicante as Alec clipped on his weapons belt. "Everything you want to take to help Jace. Don't overdo it though. And come to me as soon as possible."
He nodded for what felt like the tenth time. "I guess I'd better get packing." He hesitated. "I'll see you soon." It felt like a promise, the words much more light than his tone. Everything in here felt like life or death. Say one wrong word to the wrong person, the demon will find out and double its efforts to hide your previous memories. The only positive was that he and Magnus were working towards a common goal again, and it felt natural- not strained as it had been in New York. Maybe this would convince him that being together was better than apart−
Magnus' warm mouth pressing against his left him breathless. It felt like as soon as he was there, he was gone again. "I had to." Alec watched, stunned, as Magnus sauntered down the hill and called over his shoulder, "See you soon."
Seraph blades. His bow and arrow. Two steles. Plenty of water. Dehydrated food that Shadowhunters occasionally used on long trips. Alec pushed another set of gear into his bag. Maybe Simon would need it.
A knock sounded at his door. He hurriedly pushed the half packed bag into his closet and shut the door just as his father entered the room. "What are you doing?"
Normally that question wouldn't have sounded that suspicious coming from Robert. But it wasn't him that wanted to know what was going on- it was the demon. Alec wanted to shift away from the closet, to do something less guarded, but he didn't want to the run the risk of revealing himself. He stepped slightly away and smiled slightly.
"Nothing much. Just putting away my− ah, my extra clothes." He hoped Robert didn't spy the neatly stacked bags on top of his shelf, which he couldn't have gotten up there in time if he was Jace.
He didn't look convinced. Alec hurried on. "So, how are things at the Gard?"
He winced internally. If only Shadowhunter training covered lying convincingly and diversionary tactics when your father was really a demon in disguise who was feeding off your dreams so you needed to get out of here before the demon got too powerful and−
"I'm just going to the bathroom." He mumbled as he tried to cover his flushed cheeks. Pushing past Robert, he could feel the heavy weight of his black gaze on his back. He practically ran to the bathroom and slammed the door behind him. He sank to the cool tiled floor. The strain of continually watching himself was beginning to show.
Oh, crap. The contents of Alec's bag were half spilling out of it in his cupboard. But if it was opened… he put his hands over his face, heaving himself up and pulling open the door.
Down the stairs, he heard the doorbell ring. Robert's heavy step sounded on the wooden floor of the front hallway, and Alec felt most of the tension drain from his body. He stopped rushing and walked to his room, noting that the cupboard looked undisturbed.
The sound of voices from downstairs echoed up the stairs as Alec shut his door. Muffled conversation still floated through the wood, but he felt better with a physical barrier separating himself from the suspicious and unthinking illusions.
Crossing his room, he pulled the bag out of his closet and checked through it a final time. Magnus' confusing behaviour still hung in his mind- so much so that the methodical work didn't even dim the image of him walking down the hill and away from one very confused Shadowhunter. The closeness here- but then distance at home- was almost as bad as not knowing if he was okay at all. As well as being so contrasting that Alec found himself wondering if it was all an elaborate trick and Magnus was just another robot.
He tried to imagine what it was like for the warlock. He'd lived for hundreds of years and had so many past relationships and experiences that Alec couldn't even begin to guess at. When he imagined the 1800's, it was all disease and poverty, alongside incredibly lavish formal wear and stuffy English accents, despite the extensive history lessons with Hodge.
He felt the old insecurity begin to take root- that he was just another phase, another face that looked so much like this Will Herondale who kept coming up. Jace's ancestor was probably every inch as good looking as Alec's cocky parabatai. Another fleeting mortal that could was as ephemeral as a wave rolling into shore and draining back out again- quickly replaced by another.
He pushed the thoughts down. They had taken over his mind before, and look where that got him. Right now, the focus shouldn't be on him anyway. It was about finding Jace and getting him to safety.
Swinging the duffel bag over his shoulder, he gently pushed open his window. The hinges creaked and he winced. Every noise sounded as loud as a gunshot, and Alec was convinced that the demon would throw open the door at any second and drag him away. Movement across the street caught his eye, but it was just a tree moving gently in the light breeze.
Alec looked down at the grassy earth. A two-story drop with not so much as a branch between him and the ground. His stele firmly in his grip, he tossed the bag down first. It landed with a soft thump on the grass outside.
He held his breath. His heart was thundering, and although his hands weren't shaking, his breath was slightly unsteady. If the demon caught him now, it had the power to, and probably would, wipe his memory of the last few days. It would all be over- by the time Magnus had redone all of his work, it would be too powerful for even Magnus to overcome it. He'd be trapped in this fantasy world forever.
For the first time, he wondered whether that would be so bad. After all, he was unlikely to get hurt, everyone hailed him as a hero, and Max was alive. His family was intact. What would be so bad about being passably normal for once?
Before he'd even finished the thought, his brain was providing another scenario. Surrounded by all of these fake people, designed to mimic his family. What was the point of Max being alive if he wasn't even truly there? As well as the fact that a demon was growing more and more powerful off of his dreams. As a Shadowhunter, he felt obligated to destroy it and ensure that there wasn't another powerful demon lurking.
And Sebastian. Back in the real world, who knew how much time had passed. The Endarkened could have destroyed the vampires or hundreds of warlocks. They could have invaded Idris. Magnus was still partly there, and he would have to deal with the consequences of a world ruled by Sebastian. He needed to get out of here.
Alec's resolve hardened and he climbed onto the windowsill. He prepared to take the fall, every muscle in his body tensing.
The door flew open with a bang. Alec glanced over his shoulder to see Jace standing there open-mouthed, and he felt guilty for half a second before realizing that he was going to help the real Jace.
He jumped.
There sensation of freefalling was invigorating. Nothing there to catch and slow his descent. Nothing to stop him. The ground rushed up to meet him all too quickly, and reality slammed firmly back into place, along with the ground beneath his feet. He grabbed his back and set off running, still shaken from the fall and actual landing from his window. Not for the first time, he was grateful for all the training on the ropes Jace made him do. It sure made him good at tumbling and landing intact.
Alec ran until his lungs were burning, but he didn't think it was his speed doing that. It was the shout that sounded as he launched out of the house. Jace had obviously yelled for the demon, and it could be pursuing him right now. The thought made him short of breath in alarming way. He'd been trained his whole life to kill demons, but how could he face one in a situation he had no control over- and his enemy had all of it? A fight would ensure the demon got close enough to power him, but if he was far away enough, it wouldn't have any influence.
He finally reached the hill that he and Magnus had spoken on that morning. A familiar figure cut a line against the sky, and Alec felt his legs work that little bit harder to get him there faster. Cerulean sparks showered from the top of the hill, making him feel as though he was in a peculiar rainstorm.
Something caught at his arm, and he nearly went flying. He only just managed to evade the uncompromising grip. Without looking over his shoulder, he already knew it was the demon. A breath gasped out of his lungs without his permission, and his heart pumped so loudly that it almost drowned out any other noise. He wasn't aware of anything else but Magnus on the grassy slope. His vision tunneled to the bright lights, as brilliant as the sun. He pushed himself as hard as he could and the tough ascent began to level out as he neared the top.
Magnus' hands moved frantically, drawing patterns and shapes. A shimmering began to separate itself from the rest of the air, and Alec could see the familiar outline of the Institute hanging in midair.
He barely had time to take in the demon falling behind as he stumbled towards Magnus, grabbed his shoulders and pulled him into the swirling maelstrom of the portal.
Could the demon jump in after them? Will it still have influence over Alec from so far away? Would it travel from Idris to NY just to keep Alec in his grip?
Clary's up next, and very soon, they're going after Jace.
On another note, do you guys prefer longer chapters less regularly, or shorter chapters more often?