First Fanfiction! I hope you enjoy it! (No copyright intended, all characters belong to Cassandra Clare)

CASTLES MADE OF SAND, CHAPTER FOUR

A Taste of Honey

"I will return, yes I will return,
I'll come back for the honey and you."

Alec slapped the palm of his hand to his forehead as Magnus, he assumed since the guy behind him had mentioned that name, left the room. What had he done? Hadn't Simon told him to stay away from the cat-eyes kid? Seeing as Alec unsuspectingly walked head first into that trap, he could only blame himself. He wanted to know a simple page number, and ended up having the other person he was supposed to avoid knock his book from his desk -purposefully by the end of class.

When Magnus had sharply lifted his head, Alec was instantly stunned and caught off guard by the most piercing yellow-green eyes he had ever seen. They almost appeared fake; too glossy and yellow to be real. Those eyes blazed like an uncontrollable flame of confidence, and struck Alec to the core, cutting off his voice and right mind; not to stare. Alec had hit that one on the nail too; what did Magnus think of him? Did he think Alec was some weird kid that kept sneaking a quick glance at him just to take a closer look at those eyes? Better yet, why did Alec even care? If anything he would make sure not to be late for tomorrows class, so he could snag a seat in the front away from them.

Clary seemed okay, however he knew she was playing herself up trying to show Alec that she was interested... But he wasn't interested in her. For whatever reason he couldn't comprehend, because she was pretty; her red flowing curls framed her heart shaped face perfectly, that was littered with thousands of freckles, and her eyes were the color of emeralds. Alec had dated girls in the past, but the relationships never lasted that long. For him, he believed in meeting that one person that would change everything for him, and once he found that person he would obviously give up looking for the latter. He had yet to have that experience, and to be frank, he didn't count on it happening anytime soon.

The only good thing about the class was having Sebastian's presence. Although they hadn't seen one another for a couple of years, Sebastian hadn't changed all that much, and gladly welcomed him in -which was a surprise, Alec had to admit. Seeing as though Sebastian hung out with that group, he would've guessed for him to give Alec the cold shoulder; being the new guy and all. And that guy, that was sitting behind Magnus with white-blonde hair, didn't appear to be that horrible, he easily asked Alec questions as if they knew each other which was a relief -even if Alec clammed up like the nervous anxious guy he was, and was unable to reply before Magnus butt in.

Alec would have been fine with sitting at the back in all honesty, had it not been for the guy that was dressed in all black structured clothes, black sweeping hair that fell shapely around his face, and blue eyes that shown like river water at twilight. He made Alec want to run away and hide; the callous glower he bored into Alec, caused him to freeze, and want to slip away quietly -as far away as he could get. It was decided in that moment, that he was not to venture to the back of the English room again.

The second bell rang frantically overhead, and Alec cursed himself for getting so lost within his thoughts. History class was next, and all he wanted to do was go home. Not to mention the fact that he had no idea where he was going, and would most likely get his second blue slip of the day; but it was worth a try. Most people would give up by now, but ever since he was a child, his father Robert would tell him, Jace, Isabelle, and Max, that giving up was the equivalent to accepting your failure -and their family were not failures. It was what their family was essentially known by: their relentless nature to back down. However in Alec's case, their family mantra always conflicted with his timid nature.

He walked down the crowded halls, trying to navigate where he was going by the tiny school map that he held in his large hands. "Hey there, Alec right?" Clary nudged him playfully in the arm, as she swept up to him and began to walk beside him. He hadn't realized how tiny she actually was, until now. Alec being 6'1'', towered high above Clary's petite 5'3'' stature. But even though she was miniature compared to him, she gave him the feeling that he should be scared of her.

"Yeah," he gingerly said, and gave her a half hearted smile.

"Where are you headed to? Maybe we have classes together." She cheerfully said. Alec was about to respond when a hand clamped down on his shoulder roughly, causing him to stagger backwards.

"Hey, how was first block?" It was Jace. His voice was unmistakeably unique, in the way his tone conveyed the utmost confidence and cockiness. "And who is this, short glass of cherry lemonade?" Jace came to stand beside Alec, and pointed to Clary, whose green eyes were gliding back and forth between the two boys, drinking in their appearances. Alec rolled his eyes.

"Jace, this is Clary. Clary, this is Jace." Alec flatly said, not interested in introductions -more so on getting to class.

"Wow Alec, I didn't know you could work this fast." Jace whistled and shook his golden hair earnestly.

"What?" Alec spun to face Jace. "You think... Oh no, we're just friends." He tried to deny any connection between himself and Clary; even if he didn't know why. Alec could see from the corner of his vision that Clary was now pouting instead of smiling.

"Good," Jace beamed brightly, and wrapped his arm around Clary's shoulder. Even if Jace wasn't as tall as Alec, Clary still looked like a doll in comparison to him. "Then you don't mind me stealing her away from you," Clary looked up to him dubiously. A dumb semi-star struck look was plastered across her pretty features. Alec thought momentarily that, that was the reaction everyone who had first met Jace would have -he was all golden, and bronze beauty; nothing about him made him un-irresistible -that is if you glanced over his major ego that he enjoyed flaunting. "Just for the day Clare."

"Clary," she interjected.

"Whatever you say." He gave her a wide grin, that revealed his pearly white teeth. Only Alec would notice the small chip in his left incisor, but Clary being dumbstruck by this lion of a man, would probably never notice. They began to walk towards the main entrance together, leaving Alec in the middle of a swarm of oncoming people alone. He felt jealous, and enraged; his stomach dropped between his knees. He quickly shook his head, trying to release the tension that had built within him. He was about to tell Clary about meeting Simon in the band room at lunch, but didn't feel it was all the important to call after her in the hallway full of people, and in turn embarrass himself. Turning back to his little map, he took the halls in long lengthy strides and eventually found his way to History.

By the end of the day Alec felt exhausted and spent. Apparently Ms. Graymark's form of 'making up missed time' was wiping down all of the boards on the north side of the building, and then continuing to mop down the floors. It was vigorous work that Alec hadn't paced himself at; hoping to be released from his duties, and go find Jace and Isabelle during lunch. But every time he had finished his tasks, Ms. Graymark gave him a fresh batch of new ones to endure. On top of that, finding his way to math was far from a walk in the park. Who knew the school had four levels? He sure as hell didn't.

Now Alec was headed to his Biology class, the last block of the day -with time left to spare. He took it upon himself to study the map of the school and where each and every one of his classes were located during the class previous.

He walked into Biology class, seeing no familiar faces -which was a good thing. Because it turned out that Johnathan and William had Math with him, and Clary who had been late getting to class with her hair looking as if she ran through a steam blower, was in his History. This was finally the only class he didn't have with either one of them, and Alec breathed a large sigh of relief.

He found himself a lab bench close to the far right back corner, that was nestled in between a large window, and sleek black counter tops that ran the length and width of the room. The second bell rang, and everyone had settled into their spots -leaving Alec to himself. Which was a good thing, he usually did better in his studies when kept alone. This class is going to be a breeze, Alec thought just before, he, walked into the room.

Magnus swayed in, his hips rocking from side to side with every step. Not paying any attention to the teachers protests about being late. Many of the girls in the class devoured Magnus' image, swooning and beckoning him over with their eyes. He wasn't wearing the grey bomber jacket anymore, but instead only his dark black waxy jeans that hugged him in all the right places, and a deep plum t-shirt that showed off just how lean his body was. Alec ducked his head down, praying Magnus would not see it fit to sit next to him. Which he was betting he wouldn't, but with Alec's luck the opposite was bound to happen.

"Hello, Alexander." The sound of Magnus' voice sent harsh tremors throughout Alec's body. And the mere fact that he had called him by his first name heightened those tremors, causing his body to tremble. He hated when people used Alexander, instead of Alec... But he would never admit to anyone that the way Magnus said it was more then acceptable in his mind. Alec lifted his head slowly, meeting the harsh blaze of those yellow-green eyes. He sucked in a breath sharply, trying to calm his nerves, but nothing seemed to be working. "Is this seat taken?"

"No, but why don't you go sit over there," Alec pointed to an empty seat beside a dark skinned girl, with fluffy brown hair, who hadn't taken her hazel eyes off of Magnus since he walked in, "I'm sure she would love for you to." He hadn't meant to sound so rude, but at the moment he couldn't help it.

"Oh? And you wouldn't love for me to sit by you either?" A smile tugged at Magnus' full lush lips.

"No-Yes... Well, I don't know." Alec stuttered briefly, and felt heat crawl up his cheeks. Magnus stood there starring at the now partially flustered Alec, his smile widening immensely. Alec tugged at the collar of his shirt, wondering when the heat in the room had suddenly turned to full blast. "Don't just stand there, sit down if you're going to." He gestured to the aqua green stool beside his. Magnus took it gladly, and flipped open his bag, as a small black journal encrusted in gold around the edges fell to the ground. Alec being a slight overly generous person -due to his grandmother -reached for it, and held it out to Magnus.

"You have a diary?" Alec just about laughed at the thought, but held it in not wanting to seem judgeful.

"Mmm, I guess you could call it that. I much rather the terms journal or memoir, they have a less childish ring to them. But we'll just go with diary for you." He shoved the little black book, into his backpack, and took out a larger notebook that he began to scribble notes into. His long lean fingers danced flawlessly across the snow white paper. "Don't stare, you'll make me uncomfortable, and then cause yourself to become uncomfortable." Magnus said, never lifting his head from the paper. The blood drained from Alec's face as he realized that he had been gazing at Magnus for an abnormally long time.

"I wasn't starring." He tried to settle his voice long enough to sound convincing. Turning his head away to look at the wall next to him; concealing the high contrast blush that would not go away, for the life of him.

"Okay class, I am proffesor Starkweather. Just Hodge, is acceptable too." Their teacher began to go on, and on about rules and expectations of the year, not missing a single beat. He talked about how cellphones would be confiscated as soon as he saw them, how food was a no-no in the lab space, and how skipping was unacceptable. Basically the usual speech you got from every teacher at the beginning of the semester. Hodge also went on to talk about the different courses set up for the duration of the year: Plant life, Body parts & functions, and Sex. Great, Alec thought, the one topic I hate. "And you see the person beside you? They will be your partner for the remainder of the semester."

Alec frooze at Hodge's final comment. He now wished that he forcefully dragged Magnus over to the tan girl. He looked over at him, and even though Magnus was still writing god knows what, he had a huge grin stretched across his tawny face.

"First assignment, will be to write down a list of attributes about your partner. Since we will be starting the Sex unit first, it seems fit to discuss qualities in others that we, as humans, may be attracted to." Alec groaned, and rolled his eyes. "I expect the report on my desk first thing wednesday afternoon." As soon as Hodge was done talking, everyone in the class turned to their partners, prying each other for information -well everyone except Alec and Magnus. This class was supposed to be a haven for Alec, but it turned out it was the exact opposite, and he was stuck with no way out.

Alec could feel those cat eyes fixated to his head, but he didn't dare turn to meet them. He stared blankly ahead, swimming in his own dread and terrible luck. What was it Shakespeare had once said? 'And fortune, on his damned quarrel smiling, Show'd like a rebel's whore: but all's too weak.' Basically meaning in Alec's circumstance, that luck was around for a very, short time, like a 'whore'.

"Lovely," Magnus damn near purred, "are we going to do the project now or later? I would prefer now, since I have previous engagements for the later, if you don't mind." Alec shivered. What was it about the way Magnus spoke to him, that could cause these uncontrolable shivers to run wildly throughtout his body?

"Can I ask you a question?"

"Alexander, that is the point of the assignment -" Magnus snarkly replied, before Alec interrupted.

"No. Like a completley irrelevant question," Magnus nodded his head for Alec to continue, "why did you sit by me? I thought you hated me for snapping at you back in English." Alec shyly ducked his head down, as Magnus lowly chuckled under his breath.

"Even if you were a bit rude to me before, I don't dwell long on trivial things. In my mind, I didn't think we would have another class together, but low and behold, here we are."

"You didn't answer my question." Alec noted, his head still ducked down, between his shoulders. He was trying his hardest to avoid those eyes, because he knew that once he looked up, he wouldn't be able to stop himself from getting lost within those eyes.

"I just thought we could make ammends. Start off semi-fresh again." His large, tan, perfectly lotioned hand came into view. "Hi, I'm Magnus Bane, such a pleasure to meet you." Alec looked down at his hands that rested in his lap, and felt instantly embarrassed; his hands were rough and calloused, and oh so pasty white. He took Magnus' hand in his own, feeling the need to recoil on how cold Magnus' hand was. Great, another thing to be embarrassed about: your clamy hands, Alec shook his head at the thought.

"Alec Lightwood, uh... Nice to meet you to?" His greeting came out more as a question.

"Alexander," Magnus literally hummed his name, "shall we get started?"

"Yeah, why not." Alec released his notepad from his backpacks confides. He tapped the end of his pen to his chin, wondering where to start..."Favorite color?" He finally thought of.

"Does that really matter?"

"Well, we are supposed to get to know each other... it's a good place to start."

"It's a terrible place to start." Alec rolled his eyes and huffed under his breath.

"No one was asking you..." Alec muttered.

"Oh, on the contrare, I seem to believe you just asked me of my favorite color, lovely."

"I wasn't talking about that!" Alec raised his gaze from his notebook, a deep crimson flush collected on the apples of his cheeks. Magnus was starring at him, dead straight on.

"Meek." Magnus shrugged.

"What?"

"You're meek. So I am going to right that down as an attribute."

"Pompous." Alec crossed his arms over his chest, offended by Magnus calling him meek. Two could play at that game. Magnus raised his left eyebrow high at Alec's comment, his lips set in a straight line, and his eyes calculating.

"Fragile." He suggested.

"Arrogant."

"Naive."

"Superficial." Alec gritted his teeth together.

"Frigid." Magnus spat back, obviously offended by Alec's comment.

"I am not frigid. Even if I was, you don't know me, so how would you tell."

"I call it like I see it, sweetheart." Magnus gave Alec a sincerely fake smile, his cat eyes dialating weirdly -it was if he actually was a cat; Alec had never happened upon a set of eyes that did that. He was instantly enraged by Magnus. Back home on the east coast, there was no one that came close to being like Magnus. Usually Alec got along well with people, even if he was quite shy and submissive; no one tended to piss him off. But Magnus definetly made him want to reach over, and punch him in the gut until he screamed mercy.

The last bell rang, and within seconds Magnus was gone like a bullet shot. Alec smacked his head down on top of the lab table. This is going to be a long year.

A/N: Holy, that took so long to edit, and I'm still sure there is probably a couple of mistakes. Sorry! Also sorry if it was a semi-long wait, the next one might take even longer... I'm suspecting at the most 4 days! Let's pray I can finish all of my art projects, social projects, and french projects on time!

Amber,