Hi all! I hope you enjoy this chapter as much as I did! I'm really excited about this story in general, and I have some stuff planned that I think you'll love!

As always, don't hesitate to let me know your thoughts on the story! I love hearing from you!

Until next week!

Whatever Alec had expected when he first entered the Institute, it certainly hadn't been that he would encounter his father so quickly. Despite what Magnus thought, Alec had actually planned to hole himself up in the library until he could wade through his thoughts enough to formulate a plan that actually made sense. Although Alec hated to admit it, he knew that Magnus was thinking logically about the entire situation. If his father had anything to do with the Downworlder disappearances, then rushing in to interrogate him was certainly not the best move. Even if Alec knew there had to be some other explanation. Even if Alec could never believe his father was capable of such a thing. Even if Alec wanted nothing more than to yell at his father about hiding his past with the Circle.

"Where on Earth have you been?" Robert asked, his eyes sweeping over Alec in a manner that Alec had dubbed the "check-and-go." It was something Robert often did with all four of his children, especially when they were in a hurry, wanting to make sure that they were absolutely fine before hurrying off to take care of the next disaster. Despite everything he had learned that day, Alec couldn't help but smile at Robert's unconscious fatherly instincts. He wanted to tell his father that he was fine, that he'd been out in the middle of the day with no gear and only one seraph blade, so he clearly hadn't been up to anything dangerous, but before he could say anything at all, Robert was speaking again. "Never mind that, as long as you're fine I need your help," he said before turning to stalk quickly through the Institute.

Alec followed his father without a word, suddenly conscious of the fact that Robert was clearly hiding things from him, anger rising to the surface faster than Alec could have imagined. But then Alec had to bite back the guilt he felt welling up inside of him as he realized that he'd spent the past few years hiding things from his father as well. He guessed they both had a lot to own up to, and his only hope was that things would go back to normal after they did. Alec found himself wondering what their "normal" really was as he realized he was being led into the infirmary, and his heart began racing at the thought that something might have happened to his siblings while he was gone. But surely his dad would have called him if anything of the sort had happened.

Yet Alec stopped in his tracks as he saw a young werewolf boy, no more than fifteen, lying on one of the many infirmary cots. Blood was soaking the boy's shirt, despite the fact that Hodge Starkweather was clearly tending to him with very adept hands. "What happened?" Alec asked, whirling on his father with more suspicion packed into his voice than he would have liked. He was trying to keep from jumping to conclusions, but his mind was racing far faster than he wanted, and he was trying to keep up to no avail. While waiting for his father's explanation, Alec went to Hodge's side, knowing exactly what the other Shadowhunter would need. For as long as Alec could remember, Hodge had been their tutor, but that was just his official title. He'd taught Alec practically everything Alec knew about being a Shadowhunter from runes to fighting. Over the years, Hodge had taken to sharing all of the knowledge he had about healing with Alec, which was to say more knowledge than Alec could have ever imagined, making Alec his apprentice in a roundabout way.

"I found him wounded in an alleyway," Robert finally said, his voice a bit distant, but Alec barely noticed, his mind already fully occupied with the wounded boy. "It seems like someone tried to take him and he fought back. There was a lot of blood and he was unconscious when I found him. It seems whoever tried to take him was scared off by the fact that he put up such a fight," Robert concluded, but Alec's mind was already racing off in another direction. How could he believe that his father was helping this boy when someone had so clearly seen Robert taking a different Downworlder? Alec was trying to shake his doubts, but his father was only serving to implicate himself more and more. Yet why would Robert have brought the boy here to be healed if he had been planning on kidnapping the boy in the first place? Unless he needed healthy victims. Alec shrugged that suspicion off, telling himself that Robert would have been hurt in the process as well if that were truly the case.

When Alec found the time to do so, he looked up at his father, searching Robert's face for any signs of deception. "Then why haven't you called the leader of the New York pack?" Alec asked. He repressed a wince as he realized just how much anger was packed into his voice. Robert seemed to notice this too, his eyes darting toward Alec in surprise. Alec never once raised his voice at his father, but he was dangerously close to doing so now. All of the anger and betrayal he felt after the conversation with Malcolm was rushing at him at once, and he had no time to think any of it over. Yet before Alec could say another word, the boy before him seized up in pain, and he moved to place his hand on the boy's shoulder. Seeing people in pain was a common occurrence when your line of work was demon hunting, but there was something so abhorrent about a child in pain that tore at Alec's heart.

"Do you really think they'd believe me, Alexander?" his father asked, a surprising amount of anger mirrored in his own voice. "As soon as the leader heard that we had this boy, they would come running to attack the Institute. There would be no making them see reason. Even the Clave would see it as though I'd broken the Accords." That only caused the anger to well up inside Alec in even greater quantities. How could his father be so blind to what was going on right in front of him? What had clouded his father's judgement so much that he would risk a life to keep himself out from under the Clave's radar? Alec almost began to wonder if it had anything to do with his past in the Circle, but he pushed that thought aside, hoping to get the time to think about that later when he had far fewer distractions.

"So you were more worried about your reputation with the Clave than the life of a child?" he finally asked, all but spitting the words at his father. Robert looked more shocked than Alec had ever seen him, but that didn't change the fact that Alec knew his words were true. Sure, it was probably true that the werewolves would want to immediately blame Robert for the boy's injuries, but if a trial by the Mortal Sword meant saving the boy's life, then why was it even a question for him? The werewolves would have to believe Robert then, if he agreed to trial by the Sword to appease them because he would be physically unable to lie. "Are you hiding something?" he asked, his voice low and cold. Much colder than it had ever been with his father. So cold that he wondered where all of this had actually come from.

For a moment, Robert looked as though he couldn't find a response. His expression was full of open pain, and Alec began to wonder if he'd gone too far. But he couldn't find an explanation for what was going on, he couldn't connect the dots and figure out where the truth truly was, so he simply waited for his father's response, hoping he hadn't done too much damage. "Alexander, what do you take me for?" Robert asked, his voice slow and calm. "Hodge conveyed to me that he could easily heal this child. We'll heal the boy and then I plan on escorting him back to his pack. Do you honestly think that I would put the boy's life on the line in that way?" Instead of responding, Alec simply looked down at the boy before them, moving to wipe away some of the sweat that was most likely beginning to appear on his skin due to the pain that he was in. "Do you honestly think that little of me?"

Alec turned back to his father then, the raw pain in Robert's voice catching him so off guard that he was unable to control his own expression. All that Alec could see in his father's eyes was a pain so genuine he immediately felt an unfathomable amount of guilt for having caused it. He'd never before stooped so low, even when he was angry with his father. But here he was, allowing Malcolm Fade's words to get under his skin to the point of hurting someone incredibly important to him. By the time Alec had formulated any sort of response, his mother was bursting through the infirmary door. "This came for you," she said, handing Alec a letter that was very clearly addressed to him. "It was marked as urgent," she explained, suddenly sensing the tension in the room and realizing that she'd likely interrupted something.

Stepping away from Hodge and the wounded boy, Alec glanced down at the letter. There was no denying that he knew who it was from without looking at its contents. He would know the scrawling script anywhere. After a month of watching Magnus draw maps and write list after list, there was no doubt that the letter was from him. But if the warlock was using magic to send him letters that were marked urgent, then there was certainly something very wrong. Alec tore the letter open despite the fact that both of his parents were eyeing him with open curiosity. He took the deepest breath he could muster, trying to calm his nerves, wondering if Magnus had managed to get himself into trouble in the short time they'd been apart.

Trying to ignore his parents as much as possible, Alec read the letter, not realizing that he was holding his breath. "Alexander, it seems the wards around my apartment have been broken," the letter read, and Alec began to wonder how Magnus had actually had the time to send a letter like this. "I sent this letter magically in a matter of seconds," Magnus's letter continued, explaining Alec's first question. "But make no mistake, I am not requesting your assistance. Quite the opposite. I wanted you to know that, in the event that this is a trap of some sort, all of the information we have gathered has been sent to your room in the Institute. Please do not fret, and please stay away from my apartment until further notice. Yours so very truly, Magnus." Alec quickly folded the letter up, shoving it into his pocket.

Striding back to where his parents were, Alec reached for his stele, already applying runes for strength and agility, knowing that he was likely about to walk into a fight. "Promise me that this boy will get back to his family," Alec said to his father, barely looking up as he continued to apply runes. Robert nodded, but Alec was already halfway toward the door, not stopping to explain anything to his parents. He knew they would be worried, but that was something that could be remedied when he returned home. For now, Alec's only thoughts were of Magnus. The warlock would not have sent him a letter like that if there was no danger present. So Alec ran to his room and retrieved his bow and arrow, grimacing at the pile of papers Magnus had magicked onto his bed. Alec's mind idly protested that Magnus had specifically said to stay away, but Alec told his mind to shut up. He was a Shadowhunter, and it was his job to help people in danger. At least, that was the reason he told himself he was going to help Magnus.

Upon entering his apartment, Magnus didn't notice anything immediately astray, but that didn't mean that he was safe. There were very few people in the world who had the power to take down the wards he had so carefully placed around his apartment. There were very few people in the world that Magnus was afraid of. And the biggest problem was that both groups consisted of the exact same people. Before taking another step inside, Magnus magicked a letter to Alec, something that would hopefully keep the Shadowhunter out of trouble long enough for him to make sense of what was going on. Over the past month, Alec had a habit of simply showing up at his apartment when he needed to work on the case. Which was generally not something that bothered Magnus in the slightest. But that was when his wards were up.

As soon as the letter and their information from the investigation were on their way to the Institute, Magnus began to assess the situation in front of him. The entire apartment looked intact, and Chairman Meow was curled up on his couch, sound asleep, as he normally was. This puzzled Magnus the most because he knew that if something was amiss, the Chairman wouldn't be sleeping it off. At least, he wouldn't be unless the intruder had already made a move. And Magnus was certain that there was an intruder. He could feel their magical presence, and he knew that there was likely going to be a fight on his hands. After turning on the lights, Magnus reached to shut the door, hoping that acting normal would lure the intruder out.

And that was when he heard something in the kitchen. But he had to be hearing the wrong thing because Magnus was entirely certain that he was hearing the water running in the sink which was the last thing he'd expected to hear from his intruder. Being highly aware of the fact that the sound of the water could easily be a trap, Magnus cautiously made his way toward the kitchen. As he reached the kitchen door, Magnus readied his hands, sparks already flying from his fingertips. He took several deep breaths, trying to remind himself that he, the High Warlock of Brooklyn, had nothing to fear from a measly intruder. But then the little voice inside his mind reminded him that the measly intruder had made short work of his wards.

Disregarding the little voice, Magnus launched himself through the doorway and into the kitchen, a defensive spell shooting from his hands. But at the last second, Magnus realized his mistake, and he redirected the spell, sending it crashing into the ceiling. Which was actually much worse than if he'd let the spell hit the supposed intruder in the first place as the ceiling decided to collapse under the force of the spell, quickly crashing down toward the floor and the other man. Yet before any of the ceiling could hit either of them, the intruder threw up a spell of his own, halting the falling pieces in their places and swiftly returning them to their former position without so much as glancing up at the ceiling in any way. "Seriously, Magnus? Are you trying to kill both of us?" Ragnor asked, finally turning to face him. "There are much easier ways to do that, you know. Ways that won't knock us out and then slowly suffocate while your cat eats our paralyzed bodies."

For a moment, Magnus was overcome with relief. But that didn't last nearly as long as Ragnor probably thought it would. "Seems as though you were trying to get yourself killed," Magnus replied, moving to turn the sink's water off, completely disregarding Ragnor's snarky, dramatic comments. It seemed as though Ragnor had been planning to cook a meal. In Magnus's apartment. Without Magnus. "Why the hell would you tear down my wards like that? If you wanted to come over, you could have called me. It's not as though we don't have cell phones, Ragnor. You scared the shit out of me, and you know it." Magnus wanted to walk over and smack the smile off of Ragnor's face. Of course Ragnor found this funny, but Magnus was already thinking of the fact that he had unnecessarily contacted Alec, likely worrying him for no reason whatsoever.

Ragnor walked back into the living room then, and Magnus knew there was nothing he could do but follow his friend. He fought back a smile as Chairman Meow moved to curl up in Ragnor's lap. The two of them had always been close, though Magnus couldn't begin to fathom why that was as Ragnor generally despised animals of any sort. "I did call you," Ragnor said, yet not a hint of anger was to be found in his voice. "I called you five times, Magnus. But by that time, the alarm on your wards had been ringing for too long to leave it alone," he explained, and Magnus slowly began to realize that Ragnor was not the person who had taken down his wards. And then Magnus began to realize that if the alarms for Magnus's wards were going off for Ragnor, he had only shown up because he himself had been scared for Magnus's wellbeing.

When Magnus had first moved to New York, Ragnor insisted that they set up an elaborate alarm system for his wards. If anything happened to them, an alarm would sound for Ragnor, no matter where he was, warning him of Magnus's potential danger. "When I got here, I realized that you'd recently fed Chairman Meow and you'd left the TV on for him," Ragnor continued, his voice surprisingly soft, even for him. "So I knew that you'd gone out, but there was no sign of who had taken down your wards." Magnus smiled at that, knowing where this conversation was going already. "So I decided to stay until you got back." Ragnor didn't need to continue the sentence for Magnus to know what he really meant. I stayed because I was still worried. They'd been friends, brothers, for so long that even the most unspoken of things didn't go unnoticed.

"You shouldn't have come in alone," Magnus replied, his voice even and cool. He was trying to keep from upsetting Ragnor more than necessary. "You could have walked into a trap that was meant for me." Ragnor was clearly going to say something in response, but he didn't get the chance to. Not when Magnus was grasping at his arm, wincing in pain. But the pain was all too familiar, and Magnus didn't have to push his sleeve up to know what was happening. Yet he was spared having to do anything at all as Ragnor came to kneel in front of him, grabbing his hand and pushing his sleeve up for him. The color was draining from Ragnor's face, as it usually did when this occurred, and Magnus longed to reach out and comfort his friend. But the pain was shooting through his arm again, and each of his glamours dropped completely despite his better effort.

Looking down at his arm, Magnus was not surprised in the slightest to see that new runes were beginning to appear. He easily recognized the runes for strength and agility that were being etched into his skin. He knew that they would eventually fade and scar his skin, just as the countless other runes had always done, but the burning sensation of the runes always frightened him at first. Before Magnus had the time to think about much else, the pain was suddenly gone, and Ragnor was studying his face with an exceedingly concerned expression of his own. "Ragnor," he half sighed, his voice far more gentle than it had been earlier. "You don't always have to take the pain away for me. It goes away on its own, and it's certainly nothing I'm not used to."

Ragnor seemed to study him for a few more seconds before finally standing up once more and returning to his seat on the couch. "I know," he replied, his voice slightly shaky as it always seemed to become when Magnus was in pain. "The runes just alarm me every single time," Ragnor continued, his gaze steadily focused on the floor in a way that told Magnus his mind was far away from them at the moment. "No matter how much I remind myself that they're from your soulmate, each time they pop up I can't help but react." Magnus wanted to reassure Ragnor, to let him know that he felt the same way, but he wasn't entirely sure of how to do so, so he simply remained silent, allowing Ragnor a moment alone with his thoughts.

For the past seventeen years, Magnus had been adjusting to the fact that he now had a soulmate somewhere out in the world. But it had only been about seven years since he'd learned that his soulmate was a Shadowhunter, the other person's first rune carving itself into Magnus's skin as well. At first, Magnus had glamoured the runes and their scars because he despised them. The world was playing a very cruel joke on him, and he wasn't going to play along. But as the years wore on, the runes had seemed to become as much a part of him as they were a part of his soulmate. He very clearly remembered the day he'd teared up in pride as the parabatai rune carved itself into his skin, though the pain had been overwhelming. The permanent runes were always the most painful, Magnus had quickly learned.

But now he glamoured the runes out of practicality. He knew that all of Downworld would look down on him with disdain if they knew his soulmate was a Shadowhunter. He would immediately lose his position as High Warlock of Brooklyn, and that would be the end of his life in the Downworld. And if the wrong Shadowhunter ever saw the runes on Magnus's body, he knew that their reaction would be much worse than that of any Downworlder, effectively ruining his life in a much more painful way. Yet Magnus hadn't been able to hide them from Ragnor, at least, not for very long. He'd done well at first, but Magnus eventually found himself in the same room as both Ragnor and Raphael when his soulmate had decided to apply several of the most painful non-permanent runes possible, effectively ridding Magnus of his secret as he tried, and failed, to keep the pain to himself.

They'd all slowly adjusted to the idea of Magnus having a Shadowhunter for a soulmate, but it was still hard for Ragnor to watch Magnus's pain without stepping in to help. Not to mention the fact that the runes themselves alarmed him ever so slightly. It wasn't common for Downworlders and Shadowhunters to be soulmates. In fact, it was so uncommon that Magnus had only ever known one such pair himself, but then again, he didn't remember ever seeing runes on Tessa. "Do you think this has something to do with your Downworld investigation?" Ragnor asked, effectively pulling Magnus out of his soulmate thoughts. "I mean, I know you said you were being careful, but someone could be onto you and Alec." Ragnor paused for a moment, then his tone changed yet again, once more becoming entirely amused. "Why do you always start smiling as soon as Alec's name is mentioned?" he asked, mischief twinkling in his eyes.

"I do not," Magnus immediately fired back, though he realized too late that he truly had been smiling at Alec's name. Ragnor started shaking his head, but Magnus could tell that there was no hostility in the other man's actions. "And if it has to do with the investigation, we'll find out soon enough." Magnus went on to quickly explain the day's events to Ragnor, hoping that his friend might have more insight on the situation at hand. "If Robert Lightwood truly has anything to do with this, he can't lie low for much longer. Now that Malcolm knows his name, half of Downworld will be on the lookout for him," Magnus concluded, not voicing the fact that he was afraid this would extend to Robert's children as well, though he knew that when it came to Ragnor, he likely didn't have to voice that thought for Ragnor to know that he was thinking it.

For a moment, Ragnor seemed as though he was going to say something that might actually be useful to the case, but before he could so much as open his mouth, the door to Magnus's apartment burst open, all but flying off the hinges. Both he and Ragnor were on their feet in seconds, Magnus reflexively throwing up his glamours in surprise, though later that night, he would wonder exactly why his glamours were his comfort spell. This time, Magnus refrained from firing any attack spells, having clearly learned his lesson from prematurely firing on Ragnor. Before Ragnor could seem to get his own spell done with, their new intruder was already firing an arrow. Much in the same way that Magnus had earlier acted, the intruder seemed to realize their mistake at the last second, pulling up on their bow just in time for the arrow to whiz safely above Magnus's head, lodging itself into one of Magnus's many bookcases.

It took Magnus several seconds to slow his mind down enough to realize exactly what was going on, and by the time he had done so, Alec was already saying, "Your wards are still down, Magnus." By that time, Ragnor was already laughing hysterically, the irony of the situation apparently not lost on him. But Magnus was focusing on the fact that Alec had said his name as though his life had depended on it, as though the world had righted itself as soon as Alec had realized there was no danger. "Were you even going to tell me that you were fine?" he asked, this time his voice betraying his new-found anger. "Or were you planning on letting me lose sleep while you had a relaxing night drinking wine with your best friend?"

At first, Magnus had no idea of what to do. Alec's voice was packed with so much more anger and bitterness than he had ever heard. Yet behind Alec's eyes, Magnus could see the fear that the young Shadowhunter was so plainly trying to hide. At that, Ragnor decided that it was time for him to return to the kitchen, muttering something about laying the foundation for new wards before saying something along the lines of, "At least he knows you well." Magnus sighed, taking a seat once more as Ragnor disappeared into the kitchen. Though he was under no impression that Ragnor would not be listening to their conversation. "I do apologize for the false alarm," Magnus began, trying his best to figure out how to calm Alec down. "I had forgotten about the alarm system Ragnor and I set up. In the heat of the moment, I never imagined that Ragnor would already be here."

At that, Alec snorted in a way that Magnus had never imagined he actually could, all of his anger channeling into the noise. "After the heat of the moment did you even think of calling me? Or, I don't know, even just texting me that you were fine?" Alec asked, and this time, Magnus could easily hear that his anger was diminishing with the relief of knowing that Magnus was safe. Magnus attempted to distract Alec with the fact that he had so distinctly requested that Alec stay away from the apartment, but the Shadowhunter's anger-filled response was swift. "What was the point of your letter if you didn't want me to come help? What did you expect me to do when you told me something like that? I'm not stupid, Magnus; I know what kind of power it would take to take break your wards." Magnus was trying to study Alec's face, to pick up on exactly what the Shadowhunter was feeling.

But Mangus realized very quickly that he couldn't really pin down any one emotion of Alec's, so he stopped trying, focusing on his own words instead. "If I'm being honest with you," Magnus said, despite his best intentions, "I had no idea that you would react this way. I sent you the letter in explanation for the sudden appearance of a pile of papers on your bed." He was trying to keep his voice even and calm, but the way Alec was looking at him had Magnus's heart skipping a few more beats than Magnus cared to admit. "Not to mention the fact that I was trying to keep you out of harm's way since you seem to have developed a habit of showing up here of your own accord. Why do you care so much?" he finally asked, feeling a weight lift off his mind as he got to the point of the entire conversation. Magnus shoved aside the thought that his voice had been infinitely more gentle than he had intended for it to be.

Yet at his question, Alec turned away from him, rolling his eyes as he did so. It was suddenly very clear to Magnus that Alec was trying his hardest to seem angry and aloof, but other emotions were coming through as well despite his best efforts. "You're an idiot," he replied, his voice much lower and softer than it had been just moments before. "How can the High Warlock of Brooklyn be such an oblivious idiot?" Alec asked, laughing when he saw Magnus's expression. Magnus was trying to put the pieces together, but nothing Alec was saying was adding up in any coherent way. He knew what he felt for Alec, that was certain. But over the past month, Magnus had been working on tamping those feelings down, continually reminding himself that their time spent together was purely in the name of business.

For weeks, Magnus had been holding himself back when it came to Alec. He'd toned down the flirting, he'd stopped making open advances as he had when he'd asked Alec to dance with him. Yet even his best efforts hadn't kept Magnus's heart from speeding up every time Alec walked into the room. They hadn't kept him from wondering when he would be able to see the Shadowhunter again. And apparently they hadn't kept him from smiling at even the mention of Alec. No matter how much he had denied it, he was falling for the young man in front of him. And he was falling hard. "You really don't get it, do you?" Alec asked, his exasperation openly evident. "I came here because I care," he said in the most matter-of-fact way possible, as though it was simply a fact of life that would never change.

"I came here because the thought of you being in that kind of danger made me sick with fear, Magnus," Alec continued, his tone changing yet again in a way that Magnus couldn't even being to follow. "I came here because I wasn't going to be able to function until I knew that you were okay. Why do I care?" he echoed back, the hint of a smile finally appearing on his face for the first time since he'd entered the apartment. "I care because you are easily the most amazing person I have ever met, both inside and out," he quickly added, his eyes darting toward the floor in embarrassment, and Magnus almost wondered whether Alec was going to lose his resolve stop talking altogether. "I care because you spend your life taking care of others, but I know that sometimes you need someone to take care of you. I care because -" Alec's words were cut off as Magnus's lips found his. Magnus wasn't completely sure that he remembered even standing up, but that was beside the point because he was already lost to an entirely new world.

Somewhere between the couch and Alec, Magnus had lost all of the resolve he'd been building up over the past month. At some point before their lips had found each other, Magnus had reached up to place a gentle hand under Alec's chin, effectively bringing the Shadowhunter to him. At first, all Magnus could focus on was the fact that Alec's lips were so much softer than he'd ever imagined. And he'd done a lot of imagining. But then Alec seemed to recover from whatever surprise-induced haze he'd been in, and suddenly the Shadowhunter was kissing him back. Alec responded almost immediately, melting into Magnus in a way the warlock hadn't really thought was possible. It was quite possibly the gentlest kiss Magnus had ever experienced, but every part of his body was waking up as though he'd spent at least two centuries hibernating.

Logically, Magnus knew that they hadn't kissed for very long, but the moment stretched on in his mind to an impossible length. As soon as they pulled apart, Magnus's body began to protest, already missing the way Alec had seemed to fit so perfectly with him. For several long moments, Alec simply searched Magnus's face as it was his turn to put the pieces together and make sense of the situation in front of him. "Why?" Magnus asked, noticing the heaviness in his voice that could only be explained by the fact that Alec was still holding onto his shirt. "Why tell me all of that? Why now?" he clarified as Alec's expression shifted toward an even more open sort of confusion. Not that he was really protesting the fact that Alec had admitted his feelings.

Alec's smile began to widen, and Magnus forced himself to meet Alec's eyes, knowing that staring at the Shadowhunter's smile would likely only result in another kiss and no answers. "For starters, you're an idiot, as previously pointed out," Alec said, his voice also considerably heavier. "And because I've spent the past month trying to wade through my feelings for you. On the way here, all I could imagine was walking in here and finding you dead. But then I got here and I saw you, and well, let's just say that the relief I feel now is rather clarifying." Alec was clearly retreating back into the more shy and reserved person he usually was, his courage draining as the moment they'd shared began to fade away. "What does this make us now?" Alec asked in one quick breath, as though he was finally realizing the weight of what had just occurred.

At this, Magnus took the opportunity to lead Alec back toward the couch, hoping that taking a seat would calm the Shadowhunter down. Alec was generally on the verge of apologizing for who he was, and Magnus hated watching that, yet he still hadn't figured out quite how to show Alec that the person he was called for no apologies. "What do you want this to make us?" he asked, admittedly skirting around his own answer. For a moment, Alec began studying his face, clearly trying to make sense of why Magnus had asked this. But the one thing that Magnus would never voice was the fact that he wanted to give Alec control of the situation. He wanted Alec to take control because, despite what most people seemed to think, he had absolutely no experience when it came to being romantically involved with Shadowhunters. And the last thing he wanted to do was to dive into unknown waters only to have his heart broken. Not that it wouldn't be a privilege to have his heart broken by Alec Lightwood.

But Magnus almost felt as though allowing Alec to take control would give him some distance from the situation. If things ever went south, Magnus had the feeling that this would help him feel less responsible, as if maybe the fact that it was Alec's decision would make things easier for him. But looking back at Alec once more, Magnus knew that all of this was just one large lie he was trying to feed himself. If he was being completely honest with himself, he was making this Alec's decision because he was scared that Alec didn't want the same things he wanted from their relationship, and he was hoping to save himself the embarrassment and hurt. But then Alec seemed to have finally figured out his answer as the Shadowhunter quickly turned toward Magnus, leaning into him with such silent speed and grace that Magnus barely had time to register the situation before Alec's lips found his again.

This time, they were both far less gentle than they had been before. Both of their bodies seemed to understand that they were on the same page, that they wanted the exact same things, and no words needed to be shared to clarify that. They were no longer afraid that they were overstepping themselves, and for the first time in weeks, Magnus felt himself fully relaxing. He was no longer the High Warlock of Brooklyn, the Downworlder everyone expected to save the day and fix the Downworld situation. In that moment, he was just Magnus, and if that was good enough for Alec, then that was more than good enough for him.

Laying in bed later that night, Magnus couldn't help but rub the place on his arm where their newest runes had been applied. After painstakingly putting his wards back up, his arm was aching. Between the pain of his soulmate's runes and the exertion it took to build new wards, his arm was practically begging him to simply go to sleep. Yet Magnus couldn't change the fact that thoughts of Alec were what was truly keeping him awake, the prospect of their new relationship equal parts exciting and terrifying. In his near-sleep haze, Magnus couldn't help but smile at the thought, knowing that this could easily be the best thing to happen to him in centuries. As his mind wandered, it landed on thoughts of the impending winter and the fact that he would likely see more of Alec's infuriatingly endearing sweaters as the cold only deepened. Just before sleep came to him, Magnus had the wildly random thought that he'd never actually seen Alec in anything that wasn't long-sleeved, meaning that he'd never truly seen Alec's runes, just the one he'd once placed partially on his neck. But before Magnus could wonder about the Shadowhunter's rune placement any longer, the peacefulness of sleep was upon him.