Your Hand upon my Chest

"You will ask me to marry you one day Magnus," Alec said as he put down the book he was reading and looked at his boyfriend straight in the eyes. The statement come completely out of the blue and it was not a question or a speculation, but rather an affirmation, a prediction completely devoid of uncertainty.

Magnus looked up from the ancient manuscript he had just been hired to decipher, did a double take, and almost dropped the coffee cup he had in his hand. When he looked at Alec again, his expression was a mixture of confusion and surprise.

They were sitting at each end of the sofa in their terrace. Magnus had one leg folded under him and one elbow propped against the back of the couch. Alec had his bare feet up on the ottoman, the book that had been in his hands now rested closed on his lap, his finger marking the page he had been reading.

Magnus was wearing one of his characteristic silk pajama bottoms – cerulean blue – which he had matched with one of Alec's old black t-shirts. The ensemble was an unlikely combination of fashion and functionality, glamour and thread bareness. Yet, it was somehow also completely Magnus. The early summer sun that filtered through the white canvas of the gigantic patio umbrella under which they were sheltered made Magnus' skin and his unglamored eyes glow even more golden than usual. Alec thought that the way the morning light kissed Magnus' skin accentuated his look of surprise and made him look even more beautiful and young.

They were having a leisured Saturday morning: a morning of reading, listening to music, and enjoying a breakfast they had cooked together. Alec had been on late night patrol the night before and Magnus had already been deep asleep when he came home around three in the morning. Magnus had fallen asleep with the blinds open and, before heading to the bathroom for a shower, Alec had spent a long moment watching how the moonlight reflected on the white sheets and outlined Magnus' figure making him look like a marble sculpture, softness captured in stone.

After washing away the dirt and stench of the city, Alec had put on the cottons boxer shorts and old t-shirt that served as his pajamas. He had then gotten in bed, looking forward to several hours of peaceful rest and sleep with his arms wrapped around his lover. However, he had soon realized that, one, he was overdressed, and, two, that rest and sleep were overrated. For as soon as he spooned against Magnus, he had felt the electrifying sensation of Magnus' completely naked body under the sheets.

The feeling of Magnus' bare skin and muscular back against his chest, as usual, had had the power of dissipating all exhaustion, pushing away sleep and making Alec's body immediately came alive and alight. The breath had caught in Alec's throat, and even though he could tell that Magnus was deep asleep, he could not help kissing him on the back of the neck and biting his earlobe, the feel of skin and metal from Magnus' silver earrings, awakening the sensory receptors in his mouth and tongue.

"I should let you sleep," Alec had whispered in Magnus' ear, calling on his willpower to regain control over his unruly desire, determined not to disturb Magnus' rest.

But Magnus' body had already been answering the call of Alec's body, even if his mind was still half asleep. He had instinctually leaned even further against Alec, his body almost melting into the body of the Shadowhunter, his breathing picking up speed, goosebumps rising on his skin. They had both known then that sleep was not a priority at the moment, that the night called for passion and love.

Aching for the sensation of bare skin against bare skin, Alec had removed his makeshift pajamas. He had then tightened his hold on Magnus, wrapping an arm firmly across Magnus' chest and pulling him even closer, his body suddenly besieged by an even more uncontained rush of desire. Alec had wrapped a hand gently around Magnus' jaw and enticed him to turn his head, so he could savour those lips that Alec was certain one day would drive him to insanity. The taste and feel of those lips and the sensation of Magnus' playful tongue finally defeated any vestige of reason and prudence left in Alec.

Alec's naughty mouth had finally pulled Magnus wholly from his sleep, and he replied to Alec's beckoning with a loud gasp, the feel of Alec's body and mouth confusing, enticing and tantalizing. By the time his mind had woken up, Magnus' body was already responding to Alec's enticing lips, the touch of his fingers and the feel of Alec's quick breathing against his skin.

While retaining full possessions of Magnus' lips, Alec had begun to run a hand slowly but resolutely down Magnus' bare chest and abdomen, and then proceeded lower and lower. His hand had drawn enticing and tempting swirls and circles as it leisurely journeyed the long and slow road to its intended destination. As he did, every nerve ending on Alec' skin and every one of his senses had become fully awake and completely attuned to each of Magnus' responses.

They had spent a long while caressing, kissing and moving together by the light of the full moon. They had relished in the sensation of making passionate but unhurried love, knowing that the journey up to that peak from which they knew they would eventually jump was as important as the destination. When later, he recognized the familiar signs that told him that Magnus was about to let go of the climax that was building within him, Alec had been determined to postpone gratification a little longer. To that end, and with the unrivaled dexterity and strength of a Shadowhunter, Alec had shifted both their positions, enticing Magnus to turn around, so they could face one another, he on his back, and Magnus on top of him.

Alec had looked into Magnus' cat eyes and the force of those eyes was mesmerizing, their power calling and beckoning that still-mysterious force that always lurked just under Alec's skin. Over the last few weeks, Alec had learned that it was futile to resist the power of those eyes, and before he even attempted to reign in his self-control, he had already been drawing silvery lines and circles all over Magnus' back, tiny white and silver sparkles shooting from those places where his fingers touched the warlock's skin.

When Magnus looked into Alec's eyes, he already knew what he would see, that in those pupils, he would find swirls of quicksilver, their glow reflecting and competing with the moonlight. He knew because he had already felt the air around them becoming electrically charged, like the air prior to a thunderstorm. He had also felt the already familiar change in the intensity and feel of Alec's touch, the indescribable sensation of being touched by pure magic. It was not roughness or forcefulness, but depth of feeling. Magnus understood with no small amount of exhilaration that tonight was one of those special nights: one of those nights when making love with this mysterious creature with whom he had the fortune of sharing his life and bed, was not just a union of bodies and spirits, but also of powers and magic.

"Come play with me Shadowhunter," Magnus had whispered, his eyes fixed on Alec. "Show me your power."

Accepting the invitation, Alec had closed his eyes and taken a deep breath, his chest expanding to the point of almost arching against the mattress. The silver glow of the mark on his chest had intensified and lines of silver had begun run along his skin, illuminating runes along the way.

In response to Alec's signal, Magnus had loosened the reigns on his own magic, setting it free. As they both let go of any attempt at restrain, silver and gold found one another, lines of magic and power becoming interwoven, flowing through skin and muscles, illuminating runes, shooting from fingers, and shinning in eyes in a harmonious dance. Even after weeks, the sensation of sharing magic was indescribable and almost overwhelming. It was as if every cell in their bodies had dissolved into pure light and energy, as if their very souls had become irremediably intertwined with each other and with the universe.

At that moment of ultimate connection, Alec had reached with his powers towards the forces of nature that fed magic and Magnus had followed. Together, they became keenly aware, not only of the incredible sensations of their bodies fused and moving together with ever increasing passion, but also of the mysterious forces that surrounded all living things, the miniscule particles of water and earth carried by the wind, the tiny vibrations caused by the love song of the crickets outside their window, the way the leaves on the trees experienced the touch of the night breeze.

As a shared climax had begun to build within them, and as their bodies began to shudder and tremble, the certainty of unimaginable pleasure had pulled them back to this shared moment in their bed. The movement of their bodies intensified even more, wind and gale in an ocean of pure magic, building, and building until they each felt they were exploding in millions of light particles, mind, body and soul transformed into pure and unadulterated ecstasy. Magnus called Alec's name as he collapsed against his chest, and Alec gathered him in his arms, his body protective and sheltering. As thousands of small and no so small shivers run to through their bodies, like waves crushing against one another in an uncontained tempest, Alec whispered words of love and devotion and planted dozens of kisses on Magnus' forehead and hair.

"Hi," Alec had said once he recovered his capacity for speech, a mischievous smile lifting the corners of his mouth. "Who needs Tessa's exercises if I have you to help me spend my unused energy."

"I am glad to be of service, Alexander," Magnus had said, his smile equally playful.

"I am sorry I woke you," Alec had added, a look of feign regret in his eyes.

"That was the plan all along," Magnus had replied, his body slowly relaxing against the chest of the Shadowhunter.

"It was a ploy then," Alec had whispered, his voice suddenly heavy with sleep. "What am I going to do with you Magnus?"

"I think you just proved that you know exactly what to do with me," Magnus had replied, shifting position so they could lie side by side, their foreheads touching, their arms wrapped around each other.

"Likewise," was Alec's replied, his eyes slowly closing.

"Now, sleep Alexander; you needed it."

"You do know I love you, don't you?" Alec had asked as he sighed deeply.

"Of course, I know," Magnus had replied and had then kissed Alec on the forehead, the gesture communicating that the feeling was mutual.

Magnus had stayed awake for a few moments longer, listening to Alec's breathing change and become deep and smooth as sleep carried him off. As he relaxed, Alec leaned in and put his nose close to the hollow of Magnus' throat, inhaling deeply the scent of his lover. The sound of Alec's breathing soon enticed Magnus to also relax, and his last thought before he too relinquished his hold on reality was that there were not enough numbers for him to count his blessings.

"You will ask me to marry you Magnus, I am sure of it," Alec was now repeating as if to make sure Magnus had heard him correctly the first time. The certainty of the statement and the force of his gaze told Magnus that the Shadowhunter was dead serious and absolutely sure of the veracity of his words.

"Should I remind you once again, Alexander, that it is forbidden for a Nephilim to marry a Downworlder?" Magnus stated. "Furthermore, same-sex marriage is not recognized under Nephilim law either."

"That doesn't matter," Alec replied. "As I told you before, I am doing all in my power to challenge those backward laws. It is time my people change their old ways. But even if they do not change the law, you will still ask me, and I will say yes and marry you even if that means leaving the Nephilim to live as a mundane."

Almost six weeks had passed since Magnus had summoned Asmodeus right-hand demon and learned of his father's latest attempt to take revenge on him. That night, it had been well past midnight when Alec walked through the door and, exhausted, collapsed on the couch, a deep sigh of relief escaping his lips. Magnus had put a plate of Chinese food in front of him and, as if in auto-pilot, Alec had eaten it, not knowing full well what he was ingesting. When Magnus offered to mix him a drink, he declined arguing that he was too tired and feared that he would pass out if he added alcohol to the mix. Instead, he had drank two big glasses of cold water.

When Magnus enquired, Alec had told him that things at the Institute were back to normal. He had told his people that a malfunction in the power generator had caused a short circuit on the roof, but that the issue had been quickly resolved. Jace was the one who remained unconvinced. They knew each other too well, and Jace was not the kind to ignore the effects that Alec's collapse had on his parabatai rune and on the angelic ties that linked them. Alec had known that sooner or later, he would have to have a serious conversation with his brother, and likely also with his sister. He just hoped that by then, he would have more concrete information to share. Since then, Alec had managed to avoid that conversation even when Jace continued asking, but Magnus thought that the tactic would not be effective for long.

Tessa had reminded Alec that she was Jace's ancestor, that even when the Nephilim did their upmost to forget that she was one of them once, the fact of the matter was that one of Idris' most respectable families carried warlock blood in their veins, even if a small amount of it. Jace would understand and accept the changes going in Alec, Tessa had quite certainly argued.

"I wish I could understand the changes myself," Alec had stated.

Now that the truth was out and there was no longer a need to hide it from Magnus, Alec had begun to speak openly about his struggles. He had told Magnus and Tessa that during the last month, he had waged a constant battle with a force he did not understand, a force that kept challenging his self-control, but he also felt compelled to hide.

The more he had tried to conceal and supress that energy that seemed to be emanating from his chest and running wild through his veins, the more it found ways to escape. Sometimes, it happened in ways Alec had not even noticed, like that day in Magnus' cottage when he went for a run and forgot his water bottle, and then, as if by magic, the bottle was in his hand. There had been several other similar incidents since then: his phone, which he was sure he had left on his desk, appearing in his pocket when he needed to make a call; an apple suddenly materializing on his desk just at the moment that he was thinking that he was hungry; the lights coming on by themselves when the room got too dark for him to read; his hair suddenly drying up as he was walking in from the rain wishing for a towel; an arrow appearing in his hand just when he needed it the most. Every time those things happened, he had experienced a sudden sense of relief in the pressure he constantly felt inside his chest and every time, the star-shaped marks on his chest and back had glowed silver. Physical activity had helped at first, but over time, even that had proven ineffective. "I didn't know what to do; I still don't know," he had added. "I mean, do you even understand these powers? Do we even know if this is permanent or temporary?"

Tessa had replied that unfortunately they were in unknown territory and that, as far as she knew, no one had ever gone through what Alec had gone through, that they just had to wait and see. "There is one thing you must promise me though," Tessa had added, as she fixed her eyes on Alec. "No more trying to supress your powers. It is dangerous Alec. Warlock powers need to be exercised and mastered. We feed on the energy around us, but we also need to spend some of that energy, or it builds up with nasty consequence like the ones we saw today."

"It is a matter of balance," Magnus had added, "we are conduits for magic and we need to ensure it smoothly flows through us. If we use too much, we grow weak, if we do not use enough, it builds up."

"I will teach you the exercises that helped me when my powers started to manifest," Tessa had offered. Since then, she had been true to her word and had called and paid regular visits to Alec. The two had developed a flourishing friendship and a rather unlikely complicity, which came to the fore specially when convincing Magnus to desist on his attempt to summon his father and force him to revert the curse he had put on Alec.

That night and for many nights afterwards, Magnus had been guilt-ridden, and when Alec had apologized for keeping the manifestation of his powers secret, he had told Alec that he had nothing to be sorry for. That if anyone had reasons to be sorry it was him, that Alec had stayed quiet because he did not want Magnus to worry. "I am the reason why you are going through these changes, I am the reason why you felt you had to hide, and I am the one who needs to find a solution…"

"Magnus," Alec had interrupted and had then placed a hand atop Magnus' hand as if to quiet Magnus' apprehension, "I knew that going to hell and facing Asmodeus would have consequences. I went with my eyes fully open and I would do it again in a heartbeat if you were in danger. You are not responsible for this. And, there is nothing to be gained by starting this blaming game. May I remind you that Asmodeus would have never gotten to you if I had not made the first mistake?"

"Alec is right, assigning blame is not helpful Magnus," Tessa had added, and her smile was both sincere and compassionate.

"You must promise me here and in front of Tessa that you will not try to summon your father again to ask him to revert my transformation," Alec had said, his hold on Magnus' hand growing stronger. "It is not only dangerous Magnus, but also useless. Besides, I am open to accepting whatever the future brings."

"But don't you want to at least search for a solution?" Magnus had asked.

"Searching for a solution implies that this is a problem," Alec had stated, and his tone had been a little sharper than he had intended. "This is not a curse; this is just a new challenge. You thinking that this is a curse or punishment only gives Asmodeus what he has wanted all along. This is difficult and challenging now, but in time, we will adapt. This might turn out to be a great new adventure for us; you have always liked adventures Magnus. Promise me please that you will not do anything more to reverse this, that you will let this take its course." He had added pointing towards his own chest as if to make absolutely certain that Magnus understood what he was asking.

Magnus' reply had been a simple nod and an 'okay,' and Alec had known that more convincing would be required. Since then, he had extracted other similar half-made promises every time Magnus broached the topic and offered to search for a way to undo what his father had done. Alec was determined to protect Magnus from any action borne of misplaced guilt or sense of responsibility.

It was almost two in the morning when Magnus had seen Tessa to the door. She had declined his invitation to stay with them saying that her luggage was already at Catarina's and that she and Magnus' other friend had planned to spend the day together. She had promised to come back before returning to Brazil two days later. After hugging his friend goodbye and thanking her once again for her help, Magnus had gone back to the living room and had found Alec sleeping soundly on the couch. When he had tried to wake him, Alec had not even stirred. So, Magnus had wrapped a blanket around him and after spending a few moments watching Alec's peacefully sleeping face, he had kissed him on the forehead, turned off the light and retired to the bedroom.

Magnus had taken off his clothes and stepped into the shower, wanting to get rid of the stench left by the demon. As soon as the warm shower began to wash away the grime and dirt, a dam had opened in his heart and tears had begun to flow down his face, mixing with the water and spreading throughout his body. Sobs soon followed, and his body began to suddenly shake from emotions he had not let out in perhaps hundreds of years: feelings of regret, inadequacy, self-hatred.

Magnus was not someone who sobbed or who surrendered to self-pity. He sometimes teared up, but he never cried the way he had cried that night. He had always prided himself on his emotional fortitude, a fortitude he attributed to the many sorrows of his childhood, to the years barely surviving on the streets – orphan and unclaimed – to the decades living with the distant and detached Silent Bothers. He had also always endeavoured to live a life with more joy than sorrow. That night in the shower, however, he had felt overcome by the memories of the suffering Alec had endured in the last few weeks, the memories of his own struggles and suffering, and memories of the countless times in which people had told him that one day his demon blood would be the source of his and perhaps someone else's perdition.

He had cried until his body and mind felt drained, emptied and spent, until he had exhausted all his energy and all he had left was just the strength needed to get out of the shower and drag himself to bed. Just like Alec, he had fallen asleep before he even realized it. His last conscious thought before he fell into a deep dreamless slumber was one of determination: a stubborn determination to hold on to Alec with all his strength as they both faced the new challenges that fate had put on their path.

Six weeks later, Alec was still learning how to control, manage and channel his new powers, and as most new warlocks, he was still finding out the limits and extent of his magic. Yet, Alec approached this new challenge the way he approached any other part of his Shadowhunter life: with consistency, determination, bravely and no a small amount of stubbornness. He continued to reject any of Magnus' suggestions for finding a way to reverse Asmodeus' curse, and lately, he had even begun to use the argument concerning what his new powers did for their lovemaking as a tool to dissuade Magnus. The argument was a low blow because Magnus could not deny that magic moments like the one from the night before were unforgettable and impossible to resist.

Alec remained committed to take his new condition in stride. The morning after the incident in the roof, he had arrived at the Institute almost at midday, a coffee in his hand. Despite the fact that he had slept on a sofa that was at least a foot shorter than he was, he had felt more rested than he had felt in weeks,. The late spring sunlight and the city noises had finally awoken him when the sun was already quite high on the sky. Despite knowing that work was waiting for him, Alec had laid on the sofa for a while longer, relishing in a peace and quiet that was not only the result of the silence in the apartment, but also of the internal calm he felt. There was none of the itching and buzzing that had constantly disturbed his peace and happiness in the last few weeks, and there was none of the exhaustion that supressing the energy flowing through him had caused. He had felt as if a great weight had been lifted and as if parts of himself that had been at war with each other were finally ready to make peace.

Alec had spent the rest of the day working, occupied in the many tasks that made up his life as a Shadowhunter and as head of the New York Institute: meetings with Downworld leaders, assigning patrol duties, planning for new recruit training. In the afternoon, he had called Magnus and when the warlock picked up, asked him if he wanted to go out for that dinner he had promised him the day before.

"Are you asking me out on a date Alexander?" Magnus had asked him and even though Magnus' voice was playful, Alec could still hear a trace of sadness in the warlock's tone.

"I guess I am," Alec had replied. "I must warn you though, it is not my practice to invite my dates home until at least the fifth date."

"That's a shame," Magnus had replied, and his voice suggested that he was thinking of all the possible ways in which the evening could end. "I guess I am going to have to find ways to get you in my bed Shadowhunter."

At that moment, someone had knocked on Alec's door and before Alec had a chance to reply, Jace had walked in, a tablet in one hand and a pile of papers in the other. Despite his attempts at self-control, he was sure his brother had noticed that he was blushing. "Okay then, should we meet at the restaurant?"

"You have the face of the kid who got caught with his hand in the cookie jar," Jace had teased him and Alec had gotten even redder.

That night they had gone to dinner to one of their favourite restaurants, and then met with Jace, Izzy and Clary for drinks and a few rounds of pool. Yet several times during the evening, one of them had thought that being out was not a good idea. For from the very moment they saw one another outside the restaurant, their evening became the combination of an act of seduction and an exercise in restrain. The air between them felt electrically charged, and every time their fingers brushed against each other's skin, their shoulders touched, or they looked at one another, the hairs in the back of their necks stood on end, goosebumps rose on their skin and butterflies stirred in the pit of their stomachs.

More than once, Alec had thought that that was the wrong evening to be out, that that evening was an evening to be at home lost in the arms of his lover. Magnus, on his part, had kept wishing that he could reach and touch Alec, grab his hand, put his arms around his shoulders. He had wished that Alec was not the respectable leader of the New York Shadowhunters with a reputation to maintain and an image to keep. He had even cursed those deep brown eyes that kept looking at him with desire plainly written in them and that alluring smile that kept putting all kinds of ideas in his mind.

"If you keep looking at me that way," he had whispered in Alec's ear during a break in their pool game, "I am going to do something to you on this pool table that is going to scandalize even the most adventurous Downworlders here."

Instead of replying, Alec had turned towards his parabatai and announced that he and Magnus were calling it a night, that he was tired and needed a good night sleep. "I may take the morning off tomorrow," he had then told Jace on his way out, and Jace's smile had told him he understood perfectly why Alec was leaving.

They had walked home through the park, the evening warm and dry, a fresh freeze sending the scent of the first of the season's honeysuckle in their direction. Except for a few small comments, they were for the most part quiet. Yet, their silence was not uncomfortable; it rather had the feeling of the kinds of silences of those who knew each other so well that words were not required.

When they reached the Angel of the Waters fountain, Alec had stopped and turning, had taken Magnus' hand, the gesture putting an end to the anticipation they had felt for the touch of the other. Magnus looked down at their interlaced fingers and then back at Alec with surprise because Alec was not the kind of man who engaged in public displays of affection. Taking advantage of Magnus' surprise, Alec had leaned in and kissed him, completely oblivious and unconcerned about anyone who might be watching them, not caring that they were not glamored.

The kiss had had such an effect on Magnus that he felt that if he could put his very soul in it, he would. Alec had wrapped his free hand around Magnus' waist and pulled him even closer, their bodies coming alive at the contact, and Magnus had lost all capacity for thought. The sound of the city, the praying eyes of the other people who were walking through the park at that moment, the scent of honeysuckle all disappeared, and only Alec and Magnus had existed in the world at that moment. Magnus lifted his free hand and rested it on Alec's chest, the sensation of the power emanating from Alec's mark almost singing and calling to Magnus.

"I have been wanting to do this all night," Alec had whispered during a break in their kissing. "You kept looking at me with those enchanting eyes of yours and I thought that I would certainly lose my mind if I didn't kiss you."

Magnus' answer was to pull Alec closer again, claiming those lips and letting Alec claim his.

That night in front of the Angel of the Water fountain, Alec had brought up the issue of marriage for the first time. He had said that he knew that Nephilim law did not allow for same-sex marriage or for the marriage between a Nephilim and a Downworlder. But, if Magnus would consider spending the rest of Alec's life with him, and if he was willing to wait, Alec would do all in his power and more to change the law and get his people to accept their union.

"Alexander, we do not need a piece of paper to confirm our commitment to one another," Magnus had argued, "and you are still young. Your feelings may change." Magnus had placed a hand against Alec's cheek, his eyes shining with unexpressed emotion.

"I know my own heart Magnus," Alec had replied. "I know I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I want you to be the person that gets called if I am ever in an accident or injured. I want you to be the one who, when I am too old and frail, gets to make decisions on my behalf. I want my people never to doubt our commitment towards one another. For whatever number of years that we may have together, I want us to be a family under the law. I just ask that you give me time to work on changing that law."

"Do you think that is going to change the way other Nephilim feel about us?" Magnus had asked.

"Is that what concerns you?" had been Alec's answer. "Because if my people cannot accept our union, I will resign as Head of the Institute and leave the Shadowhunters if that is what it takes for you to be happy."

"I do not want you to do anything, Alexander, nothing that will make you unhappy, and I do not want you to have regrets one day."

"The only thing that can ever cause me regret is if I do not do all in my power to make you happy Magnus," Alec had replied. "I just ask for a little time to try to change the law." Without waiting for a response, Alec had leaned in and kissed Magnus once again, his lips sweet and tender, his hand soft and steady in Magnus' hand.

After a long while of slow kissing, and fearing that if they did not continue on their way home they would certainly scandalize anyone walking around the fountain, they had resumed their journey. They had walked hand in hand the rest of the way, completely unconcerned about anyone who may look their way, content and at peace in each other's company. When they had gotten home, Alec had not let go of Magnus hand, and instead had led him straight into the bedroom and to a night of unhurried and uncontained passion and surrender.

"I want to welcome the morning in your arms warlock," Alec had whispered in Magnus' ear as he slowly peeled Magnus' clothes off. "I want this night to last forever."

That night, they had made love like those lovers who know exactly how to extract the most pleasure from one another's body; how to give and how to take without greed or request; when to stop and when to continue; when to possess and when to relinquish. They had spent the whole night in each other's arms, and in the process, they had closed the last of the wounds left by weeks of separation, struggles and secrecy.

"I am yours Alexander," Magnus had said at one point, his heart beating so fast and hard that he was sure it would break free from his chest, his body and Alec's body one connected muscle. "I do not need a piece of paper to tie my heart to yours."

"And I am yours Magnus," Alec had replied, "and while I do not need that piece of paper either, I would still like to have it."

Alec had not brought up the topic marriage again since that night. That is, until this morning when he had so certainly stated that Magnus would one day pose the question.

"What makes you so sure that I will be the one to ask you?" Magnus said. "The law has not changed; marriage between us is still illegal."

"I am a hundred percent sure," Alec replied, and his smile contained not a small amount of smugness.

"You do know Alexander that divination is not a very credible warlock skill, don't' you?" Magnus teased him. "Even those warlocks that profess to possess the gift say that it is an inexact science at the best of times. And, I am sorry to say but I don't think you have the gift of predicting the future."

"Call it informed guesswork," Alec replied. "I'll tell you one more thing: it will happen after we have a very big fight. You will realize that I am not going anywhere and that you are not going anywhere and that, even if we have to elope and get married under mundane law, we may as well make it legal."

Magnus laughed, shook his head indulgently, and then leaned in for a swift kiss. At least it was meant to be swift, for as soon as his lips touched Alec's, Alec grabbed him by the front of his t-shirt and, with his usual speed and dexterity, pulled him closer. Their lips parted for just a moment to allow for Magnus to catch his breath, but then Alec shifted his gaze from Magnus' eyes down to his lips, in that gesture of delicious anticipation and promise that always awoke the butterflies in the pit of Magnus' stomach, and Magnus knew surrender was his only option.

Magnus and Alec got lost in the sensation of their lips melting and merging, of their tongues initiating an already familiar dance, of their bodies awakening and calling for one another. Book and manuscript fell to the ground and cups of coffee and half-finished breakfasts were soon forgotten. T-shirts suffered a similar fate a few moments later and became casualties of Magnus and Alec's desire for the feel of bare skin. Alec shifted down on the sofa and pulled Magnus even closer until the warlock's body laid completely on top of him.

"Thank the Angel for weekends off," Magnus whispered between gasps, the feel of Alec's hands rounding his behind and pulling him even closer threatening to erase all coherent thought.

"Don't you have work to do?" Alec asked between kisses on Magnus' neck.

"I think I have more pressing things to do," Magnus teased, and then, shifted his attention away from Alec's neck and down to the hollow at the base of his throat. In a motion that Alec suspected was meant to drive him mad, Magnus began a slow journey with his tongue down Alec's sternum, in search for that silver mark that had become so incredibly sensitive.

"That feels…," Alec exclaimed between gasps when Magnus' tongue finally reached the eight-point star on Alec's chest and began a swirling motion meant to tease and torment. "…I don't have words to describe how that feels… Magnus."

In any case, words were unnecessary, for Magnus had learned in the last few weeks just how sensitive Alec's warlock mark was. He had learned that whenever he wanted Alec to abandon any sense of self-control, all he needed to do was to concentrate his attentions on those special spots on Alec's chest or back.

Alec had asked him once whether all warlocks made love this way, whether he, Magnus, had ever experienced this with any other of Lilith's Children. Alec had not asked about Magnus' previous lovers in a long time, and the question had caught Magnus by surprise. They had been sitting on the sofa in front of the fire one evening and when Magnus turned to look at Alec in the eyes, Alec saw the answer plainly written in Magnus' astonished expression.

"Alexander, you must know that I have never experienced those sensations before in my life, never and with no one," Magnus had replied. "You are the first and only person with whom I have ever felt this way."

"I am glad," Alec had replied, his smile loving and just a little too smug, "because you are also my first and only. There will never be anyone else."

Now, as he delineated the contours of the silvery star with his proficient tongue, Magnus was hit once again with the realization, or rather conviction, that there would never be anyone else for him, that no matter how many centuries he lived, this young Shadowhunter would also be his one and only.

Before he lost his own self-control, Magnus stood up and extended his hand to Alec. "Come Shadowhunter, we do not want to scandalize the neighbours even more."

Magnus guided Alec towards their bathroom, and once there, he turned on the shower, making sure the water was at the right temperature. Before he could turn and reach for Alec's hand and pull him into the immense shower stall, Alec embraced him from behind, the sensation of Alec's strong arms comforting and familiar, the feel of Alec's kisses and gentle nibbles along his neck maddening.

Magnus and Alec spent the rest of that Saturday morning the way many couples in love do: lost in the sensation of leisurely making love to their soulmate under the shower and then in bed, feeling absolutely complete and fulfilled, needing nothing else than the feel and taste of each other's lips, fingers and skin, wanting nothing more than to reaffirm their commitment to one another.

They were in their bed a while later, lying side by side, waiting for their heartbeats to slow down and their breathing to settle. "I don't know how you do it, Alexander, but you manage to make come undone every time," Magnus said, turning to look at Alec and propping himself on one elbow. "Who taught you how to do that?"

"You did Magnus," Alec replied with a broad self-satisfactory smile. "I haven't said this to you before," he added, and his expression was suddenly more serious, "I am sorry that at the beginning I was insecure and jealous of your previous lovers. It was childish of me. I am thankful to all those people with whom you shared your life before me. For they helped you become the amazing man you are today and because they taught you how to love me and touch me the way you do."

"Nothing and no one could have ever prepared me for you Alexander. The relationship we have is one of kind."

"And that is why you will ask me to marry you one day, Magnus," Alec said once again. "We are destined to become a family you and I."

"We already are a family," Magnus replied and leaned in to kiss Alec once again.

It took five years for Alec's prediction to come true. During that time, Magnus and Alec built a life together, as normal a life as a warlock and a Nephilim-warlock hybrid could ever built. They fought side by side in many battles, defeated countless demons, saved each other's lives and the lives of their loved ones several times, and more than once dwarfed evil ploys to destroy the Nephilim, the Downworld, or the mundane world. In time, they became a force to reckon with, evidence of the strength of Nephilim and Downworld working together, the example many used to challenge the Nephilim's bigoted prejudices.

They also did other more ordinary things together like buying a car; Magnus teaching Alec how to drive and taking him to get his driver's license; putting both their names on the purchase of a bigger apartment; having friends over for dinner; going on vacations; doing their laundry; caring for each other when sick; listing their names as next of kin on paperwork. In time, no one, not even the most conservative and prejudiced of Nephilim could think of Alec without Magnus.

Alec's prediction came true exactly as he had foreseen it. It was late winter and for weeks, they had been on the hunt for the greater demon Gressil, who had somehow escaped hell and was targeting young men in the Bronx, killing them in the bloodiest of ways. Gressill's tactic was to tempt his victims by offering them what they most desired and then killing them just at the moment in which they thought their wish was within their grasp.

The pursuit had been particularly frustrating because no matter what the Shadowhunters did, or what summoning spells Magnus used, Gressil constantly avoided them, disappearing just at the moment when they thought they had him trapped. Magnus finally cornered him in a dark alley one night. While he waited for Alec and his team, Magnus used his powers to keep Gressil contained within the pentagram he had hastily drawn in the ground.

"I know what ails your heart demon son," Gressil said, his demonic force pushing and pulling against the boundaries of the pentagram, testing the limits of Magnus' powers. "I know what you most desire and I can give it to you."

"You don't know anything," Magnus replied and extending his arms even wider, resisted Gressil's attempts to get free.

"You desire a cure for your Nephilim boy," Gressil stated and his smile was an ugly mask of malice and temptation. "You have seen what Asmodeus' curse is doing to your Shadowhunter and there is nothing your heart wants more than to revert it. I can give you what you want; I have the power to undo the curse."

That was all it took for Magnus to lose some of his grip on the demon trap, just a split second of hesitation, just a moment in which Magnus was tempted to take Gressil' offer. For the demon was correct: he had seen the latest result of Asmodeus' punishment.

It had been an ordinary morning a few weeks before. Alec had been in the bathroom shaving before work and Magnus had walked in, wrapped his arms around the Shadowhunter and rested his chin on his shoulder. He had then looked up at their reflection in the mirror, a naughty comment of some sort already forming in his lips. But then the comment had frozen in his mouth and his heart had suddenly sunk to the bottom of his stomach. For when he looked closely at Alec's reflection he had seen there what, for the last five years, he had feared to the point of nightmares. He had managed somehow to gather his emotions, hide his despair and force a smile to lift the corners of his mouth. However, since then Magnus had felt an ever-increasing sense of desperation and guilt, a desperation and guilt he had not felt since Alec was trapped in the Seven Circle five years before.

Now Gressil was offering him hope, perhaps the solution he had most searched for, that which he most desired. "How do I know you are speaking the truth?" he asked, his mind already running through all possible scenarios that might allow him both to force Gressil to give him the cure and to still vanish him back to hell.

Magnus should have known better, but he was weak and desperate, and at that one moment of hesitation and temptation, Gressil felt the strength of the demon trap weaken and falter. It was no more than a second, but that was all Gressil needed to get a grip on freedom. The demon pushed with all his strength against the trap, forcing Magnus to redouble his efforts to keep him contained. Magnus tuned out all distractions and fixed his attention solely on keeping Gressil caged. As a result, he did not hear Alec and his team approach through the entrance to the alley until it was too late.

"Give me the cure for Asmodeus' curse, or you will find out what I am capable of," Magnus said between clenched teeth.

Gressil knew then that he had won, that there was no way the warlock would be able to keep him trapped for long. For the key to Gressil's power was his capacity to tempt men, to offer what they want most; for he fed on weakness borne of unfulfilled desire. And, at that moment, Magnus was giving him precisely the strength he needed to defeat him.

Magnus felt a sudden increase in Gressil's power, and while he tried to match the demon's strength with his own and to reign in his self-control, it was too late. Gressil gave a mighty push and broke his retrains and Magnus felt himself being pushed backward with unbelievable force. He hit a wall behind him with the force and speed of a bullet and collapsed to the ground. His last thoughts before losing consciousness, were of confusion, regret and dejection.

Gressil got free that night, and as he escaped, he badly injured and almost killed two young members of Alec's team. He did not get to kill another mundane, however, and Alec and his team, with Catarina's assistance, finally trapped him and vanished him twenty-four hours later. Magnus did not learn this until after the fact because he spent the following twenty-four hours under Tessa's care, unconscious, suffering from extreme power depletion and a contusion.

Magnus was sitting on the couch drinking one of Tessa's fortifying potions when Alec walked in, carrying along the stench of sulfur that was so characteristic of demons. Magnus took just one look at Alec and knew that the Shadowhunter was more furious at Magnus than he had ever seen him.

"Tessa, I need to have a word with Magnus and I do not think you want to hear this," Alec said, his tone dead serious.

"That's fine," said Tessa, who had already spent the last few hours admonishing Magnus to her heart's content. "I am meeting Catarina for dinner. I will see you later Magnus, bye Alec," she added and put an affectionate hand on Alec's arm before walking out the door, leaving Alec and Magnus to have the biggest fight of their relationship.

"How could you do this Magnus?" Alec started. "You promised me that you would stop looking for a way to revert my transformation. Why can you not accept that I am happy with the way things are? You could have died, Gressil could have killed you, and what would I have done then?"

Magnus argued that he had seen an opportunity to give Alec his life back and he taken it. That it was true that he had not counted on Gressil's strength and cunning, but that he had had to take the chance to give Alec back what he had lost. "I did this to you Alec; I had to try to fix it," he said.

"There is nothing to fix Magnus!" Alec interrupted, his face red with anger and frustration. "And because of your stubbornness, two of my people were gravely injured. If they had died, I would have had to be the one to tell their loved ones that they would not be coming home. All because you cannot love yourself with all that you are, and because of that, you cannot love me with all that I am." Alec knew that the comment was a low blow, but he was angry and angry people do not always measure their words.

"That is unfair, Alec," Magnus replied. "I will not sit here and be judged by someone who has experienced what it is like to be warlock for all of five minutes, specially someone whose people had made it their mission in life to look down on people like me." Magnus had also known that the comment was un-called for, but he too was angry and hurt.

That night Alec and Magnus argued fiercely and when they both run out of recriminations, accusations and resentments, Magnus told Alec that he did not want to see him right now. "Well, I do not want to see you either," Alec replied and walked out of the apartment, the door banging loudly on his way out.

For next two nights, Alec slept, or rather tried to sleep, at the institute. Magnus did not call him, and he did not call the warlock either. They were both angry, hurt and full of regrets. They were not the kind of couples that violently argued, or that said hurtful things to one another. They had always resolved their disagreements with a commitment to talking things through and finding a fair solution, a solution with which they could both live. In the heat of anger, they had both said hurtful things, things that perhaps they had both felt in the deepest corners of their hearts but that they had never voiced for fear of hurting the one they loved.

On the third evening, Alec finally went home, and Magnus was waiting for him. He walked in the room with the same silent and decisive steps with which he had walked in the first night he kissed Magnus. Like that first night, rather than saying anything, he simply took Magnus' hand, leaned in and kissed him. The kiss was tender, completely sincere and had the feeling of those kisses that are pregnant with emotions that cannot be expressed in words: love, regret, sorrow and immense devotion and acceptance.

"When did you know Magnus?" Alec asked, his forehead leaning against Magnus' forehead.

"That morning when I walked into the bathroom and you were shaving. When did you know Alexander?" Magnus asked in return.

"About a week before that," Alec replied.

It had been a Tuesday like any other, and Alec had been walking down the street towards a meeting of the Downworld council. He had caught sight of his reflection in a window and had suddenly stopped. He had looked again and thought that perhaps his reflection was distorted by some particular quality of the glass. But when he got back to the Institute and looked at himself in the mirror in his office's bathroom, he had known that what he was seeing was not an optical illusion. It was not something explicitly different or wrong about the way he looked. It was rather something in the quality of his reflection, in the way in which the mirror seemed to capture his image in ice, as if he was looking at himself through a cool blue filter.

At that moment Alec had known; he had known that while he would never be younger than he was at that moment, he would never look older either, no matter how long he lived; he had known that his transformation was finally complete; that the clock had stopped for him; that he would no longer age. His first impulse was to immediately call Magnus, but he had known even then that this new development would be a terrible blow for his partner. So, he had kept quiet, wanting, once again, to spare Magnus unnecessary suffering.

"I am sorry Magnus," he now said, "I did not mean to blame you for the injuries Gressil inflicted on my team members and I did not meant to imply that you did not love yourself or me. I know you love me."

"You were right Alexander," Magnus interrupted, tears running down his cheek in response to similar tears overflowing Alec's eyes. "I have always had a hard time accepting the demonic blood that runs through my veins. That is why I did not want this for you, but that does not mean that I do not feel the luckiest man in the whole universe for having you in my life. Please forgive me for scaring you, for what I did, and for what it caused your people."

"I know that the process of becoming a warlock was hard for you Magnus," Alec said. "But you have made the process so different and easier for me. As a result, I do not hate or regret who I am, and for that I love you. I love you, not despite, but because of everything that you are and for everything you give me. I would not change anything about you… well, except for your stubbornness." Alec smiled broadly, and Magnus corresponded with a similar smile. A weight seemed to lift from both their chests; for they knew, as they had perhaps known all along, that they would be fine.

Before Magnus could say anything else, Alec kissed him deeply, unguardedly and completely without resentment. Magnus surrendered to the kiss and to the love that this incredible man offered him so openly and so freely.

"Can we go to our bed now Magnus?" Alec asked after he had thoroughly kissed Magnus until he felt drunk in the scent and taste of the Shadowhunter. "I am not used to the beds in the Institute anymore. So, I haven't slept in more than two days."

"That couch is very uncomfortable too, you know?" Magnus replied and taking Alec by the hand lead him to their bed.

The following evening, Magnus asked Alec out to dinner and afterwards suggested a walk on the park. It was a cool night, winter still lingering in the air, but their walk was pleasant nonetheless. They eventually reached the Angel of the Waters fountain and, like Alec had done five years before, Magnus turned, took his boyfriend's hand and catching Alec by surprise, kissed him deeply and unselfconsciously.

"Alexander, you predicted this moment quite accurately five years ago," Magnus said once their lips parted. The expression of puzzlement in Alec's eyes told him that the Shadowhunter had no clue of the direction the conversation was taking. "You said that one day, after a big fight, I would ask something of you." Alec expression slowly changed from confusion to dawning realization. "So, now I must ask: Alexander Lightwood would you do me the immense honor of accepting me as your husband?"

Magnus thought that if a smile could capture the brilliance of the sun, it would be the smile that Alec was now giving him. For it was a smile capable to illuminating and warming the darkness corners of his soul. Alec leaned in and kissed Magnus, and the kiss seemed to contain the Shadowhunter's whole heart.

"I am going to need an explicit answer, Alexander," Magnus said once Alec finally relinquished control of his lips.

"Of course, I will marry you Magnus Bane," Alec finally replied, his voice full emotion and his eyes glowing like pools of gold in the darkness. "I promise to honor and protect you with my very life and as long as I draw breath, and to make sure you never regret trusting me with your heart."

Six weeks later, Jem Carstairs married Magnus and Alec under mundane and Nephilim laws. They had a small ceremony by the river on Luke's farm, their Nephilim, Downworld and mundane friends and family as witnesses. Alec and Magnus wore black suits, Alec over a black shirt, and Magnus over a white one. Alec wore a golden tie, and using a simple spell Magnus had taught him, added a few golden strands to his hair. Magnus wore a silver tie and his hair displayed considerably more silvery glitter.

Jace was Alec's suggenes and Catarina was Magnus'. The ceremony took place at the moment that the sun was setting in the west and the full moon was rising in the east – a rare meeting of silver and gold. True to Nephilim tradition and determined to have their union recognized and respected by the Angel's chosen as he had fought so hard to accomplish, Alec asked Magnus to draw a wedded union rune above his heart. Then using a magic spell of his own design, Alec made a similar mark above Magnus' own heart, sealing their marriage and confirming their love.

"Magnus and Alec have also asked to be wedded according to mundane law," Jem announced once the running part of the ceremony was completed. "They will now exchange rings and their own vows."

Magnus and Alec faced each other, and each took one of the rings Magnus had made for them five years ago, the same rings that ensured that they would find one another even in the darkest of places and most dire of situations. Then using the words of Neruda, they professed their love and commitment to one another and for all to hear.

"Alexander, I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where," Magnus started and with shaking hands he slid the ring along Alec's finger. He then placed his hand above the new rune over Alec's heart.

"Magnus, I love you simply, without problems or pride," Alec responded as he too placed the ring on Magnus' finger and then rested his own hand above the mark he had made over the warlock's heart.

"I love you in this way because I do not know any other way of loving but this," Magnus continued and his voiced trembled a little.

"I love you in a way in which there is no I or you." Alec tried his upmost to control the emotions that seemed to be pushing their way into his words.

"So intimate that your hand upon my chest is my hand," Magnus added…

"So intimate that when you fall asleep my eyes close," Alec concluded.

Alec reached with his free hand and dried Magnus' tears away, and, smiling, Magnus did the same to Alec, the gestures intimate, tender and completely unselfconscious.

"By the power vested on me by the State of New York, I pronounced you married under the law," Jem then declared. "Magnus and Alec, you may kiss," he added even though his permission was completely unnecessary. Magnus had already closed the remaining distance between him and Alec to kiss him, the kiss communicating emotions that neither of them could find words to express.

"Friends," Jem then stated as he addressed the audience, "it is my great honor to introduce to you Alexander Lightwood-Bane and Magnus Bane-Lightwood. Please join me in wishing them a very long and happy life together."

This is how Magnus and Alec sealed their union and began their married life. In many ways, and except for a short and intimate honeymoon in a small private island in Hawaii, and for Alec's insistence that Magnus be listed as his husband in all official and non-official Nephilim records, their lives did not change much in the years after the got married. They had, after all, already intertwined their destinies a long time ago and by the time they walked down the aisle, they knew without a doubt that they would love and honor one another for all eternity.

Alec continued to serve as Head of the New York Institute and over time was the originator of many positive changes in Nephilim-Downworld relations. Magnus continued providing his warlock services and to work with Alec in strengthening the relationships between the different species that made the Downworld.

Things did not change significantly in their lives until a terrible and violent night five years later, when among the burning ruins of the Montevideo Institute, with her last breath Mariana Almendros, a brave Shadowhunter, bestowed on them the gift that finally began to complete their family. After that night, Magnus and Alec embarked in a new journey, a journey that many times they thought was the most challenging adventure of their lives. In the process, Alec finally learned to fish and eventually taught the skill to his own children. He also got to experience what an ordinary mundane life was like, or at least as ordinary as it was possible for someone like him who was also married to a warlock.

This chapter still needs quite a bit of work and I may make some edits later. But I am travelling for studies in a couple of days and I did not want to leave without posting this chapter.

I have one more to write before I called this epic story concluded. Thanks once again for reading.