I posted it on time! Yay! Anyway, I apologize because this chapter is very long. The first scene is a huge monster, but I couldn't control myself. Magnus and Alec in the same room = Alexis doesn't know how to stop writing ;)

Anyway, see you all next week!

Chapter 10

"What are you doing here!?" Alec asked, lowering his gun and turning on the lights of the apartment. Magnus had deliberately left them off to add mysticism to the scene, he had wanted to see Alec's first reaction when he realized that he had broken into his home, he had wanted to take him by surprise, but it had been Alec the one who had managed to surprise him.

"You said my name." Magnus said, still in shock from what he had just heard. Alec had finally said his name.

"What?"

"You said my name, just now."

"No, I didn't."

"Yes, you did, I heard it clearly, you said 'Magnus,'" Magnus said, mirroring Alec's voice and adding his own dramatic twist for effect. "I know I promised to record it, but you took me by surprise, dear. I knew it was bound to happen someday, but I'll be honest, I never thought it would be so soon. My God, Alexander, this is a very important milestone in our story, it's a shame I don't have physical evidence of it, but know that I have it here in my memory forever. And please, feel free to keep calling me by my name, I like it. I like it very much."

"It was a mistake, I wasn't expecting you, but it won't happen again, I can promise you that." Alec said. He was completely flushed, Magnus could see his cheeks getting redder by the minute. "What are you doing here anyway?"

"I came to see you, of course."

"How did you enter?"

"The window." Magnus said simply, pointing to the opening. "It was relatively easy, this isn't a very safe building, the emergency stairs lead to an alley and there's no surveillance, you should consider moving somewhere safer."

Alec rolled his eyes. "Why didn't you call? I thought that was how you wanted things to work between us."

"Really? If I recall correctly, I told you that one of the perks of this agreement was that you would get to spend more time with me. Besides, I'm here because you asked for a better way to communicate and I got it." Magnus said, handing the agent the phone he had gotten for him. "One for you and one for me. It's not a burner like the ones I've been using to call you, but you won't be able to track it either. You can try, of course, but you will only find disappointment in your path. I took the liberty of adding the number I got for this one-time-only agreement, so now, we have a very direct way of communicating with each other. That's what you wanted, right?"

"Is this a regular phone?" Alec asked, inspecting the device.

"Yes and no." Magnus said. "It works like one, it even looks like one, but besides being untraceable, it can also be destroyed with a button, you know, for safety."

Alec frowned, and Magnus just smiled. "These are custom made, Alexander. They have the same things regular phones have, they just come with some extra additions that make them very useful for people like me, and for this kind of clandestine calls and stuff."

"And how do you pay for it? Is it a plan or something?"

"No, it's prepaid."

"And the minutes, how do you-?"

Magnus interrupted him, placing a finger in front of the agent's mouth to shut him up. "Don't ask things you know I won't answer, just know that you will always have minutes to call me, always."

"Fine." Alec sighed. He was clearly not happy with that, but he seemed to have stopped with all the questioning. "You said it could be destroyed...how?"

Magnus smiled. "I'm glad you asked, we have to set that thing right away. Here, gimme." He added, grabbing the phone again and typing the code Raphael had told him to enter. "Now, just say your name after I ask you, okay?"

"What?"

"Just say it." Magnus said, rolling his eyes. Why couldn't this man just do what he was asked to do without asking? "Now."

Alec rolled his eyes too, but said his name anyway. "Alec Lightwood."

"Done!" Magnus smiled. "Now, if things go wrong and for some reason you need to get rid of this thing, you just press the on/off button for ten seconds, give or take, and say your name. The self-destruct system will trigger and the phone will literally explode."

"Literally?"

"Kaboom! You won't want to be near this thing if that happens. You have ten seconds before it blows up, so if you have do it just make sure you have a place to run and protect yourself. The explosion is quite powerful, even deadly if you're not careful, so don't go messing with it if you don't have to, okay?"

Alec nodded, now looking at the phone with wariness, as if he were holding a bomb. Magnus just smiled and started to walk around the living room, trying to have a better look at everything there was to see. He had arrived early, when there was still daylight, but he had decided to stay outside until Alec was there as a way respect his privacy. However, now that they both were there nothing was stopping him from snooping around Alec's stuff and finally satisfy that curiosity that had only grown with the hours.

"What are you doing?" The agent asked. He seemed nervous that Magnus was walking around his apartment, looking closely at all his personal things.

"Exploring," Magnus said, "I'm curious about your place, my mother used to say that you could learn a lot about people based on their homes."

"You already know more about me than you should, so..."

"Does that bother you?" Magnus asked intrigued.

"Surprisingly?" Alec said. "No."

"Good." Magnus said, and resumed what he was doing, stopping only until he stumbled across a picture frame. "Who are these?" He asked, pointing to the photo. It was a group of several people, all agents by the look of it.

"My class in Quantico."

Magnus picked up the picture and smiled at the sight of Alec. He was younger and his hair was shorter, but he hadn't changed much. "There you are! You haven't changed a bit, dear. And...are these your siblings?" He pointed to the blond guy and the dark-haired woman standing right beside him. "I thought they were younger than you."

"They are."

"Then, how come they graduated with you?"

"Well, they are very smart, they got into the academy two years earlier."

"So your father's influences had nothing to do with this?"

"No, well...maybe." Alec admitted.

Magnus put the picture down and resumed his walking, now standing in front of the large bookshelf that decorated the living room. There were hundreds, more like thousands, of books there, and he was happy to see that the first editions he'd given him almost two weeks ago had gotten a spot there at the top of it.

"I'm glad you didn't give these away, they are a great addition to your collection." He said, but Alec ignored him, so Magnus just kept walking. There was something hidden under a black curtain at the far end of the living room that had piqued his curiosity the moment the lights had come on.

"Don't." Alec said, but it was too late, Magnus had already drawn the curtain, revealing a large blackboard covering most of the wall completely dedicated to Magnus.

"Alexander!" Magnus gasped, feigning shock and surprise. "I'm very flattered, my dear. I had no idea that I was so important to you, you have a wall dedicated to my magnificent self."

"It's not dedicated to you." Alec said, rolling his eyes and letting out a huff of clear desperation.

"I think it is, I don't see anyone else in here but me, darling. Look, you even have my favorite picture of myself, gosh, I look so good in here. Red is definitely my color." Magnus said, appreciating the picture. He wasn't lying, he liked that shot, although from afar, it captured his best angles.

"Well, I put that together to catch you."

"I can see that." Magnus said, analyzing what Alec had so far.

It was definitely more than he had imagined at first, but luckily nothing that put him at immediate risk. Alec had figured out the names of some people from his past life, locations where he had definitely been at some point, aliases he had used, but nothing really close to who he really was, so he was safe...for now. "Well," he added, covering the blackboard again, "you've done your homework, I can give you that."

Alec chuckled. "I suppose I can't ask how close I am to finding you, or can I?"

"You just did," Magnus smiled, "and given that we're in the same room and a few feet away from each other, I would say that pretty close." He said, taking a seat on the nearest couch. It was very comfy and cozy, perfect for a movie night with fluffy blankets and wine, why was he thinking about that? He had no idea.

"But tell me, Alexander, where have you been, huh? I arrived here early, but didn't feel comfortable coming in when you weren't home."

"Now you have respect for privacy and boundaries?"

"I've always had respect for them, darling." Magnus winked. "And well?"

"I don't have to tell you where I was, that's none of your business."

"Were you with someone?" He asked, not knowing where that need to know that detail about Alec's personal life had come from. The agent was right, that was none of his business.

"Maybe." Alec said and, although Magnus knew the agent was lying—he really was a terrible liar—that didn't stop that strange feeling of discomfort from forming in the pit of his stomach.

"Is he as dazzlingly handsome as I am?"

Alec frowned, as he did every time Magnus either caught him off guard or said something that made him feel uncomfortable. "What gives you the impression that I think you're handsome?"

"The way you look at me." Magnus said with a grin. He knew he was playing with fire, but he had never been afraid of getting burned.

"I don't look at you in any way." Alec said in self-defense.

"If you say so…" Magnus shrugged, and just watched the agent walk to his kitchen and pour himself a glass of water.

"You want a glass?" Alec said, apparently not forgetting his good manners.

Magnus shook his head. He wasn't wearing any gloves at the moment, he had already been careless enough to grab a couple of things without them, he certainly wasn't going to leave a clean set of fingerprints on a glass of water for the agent to collect and add them to his little file, he wasn't that stupid. "So...do you know anything new about my impostor?" He asked instead.

"I told you this morning," Alec said, shaking his head, "there's nothing new, this is all we have." He added, showing Magnus a very short file about last week's new case.

Magnus grabbed it and began to read it. It was a detailed report of the crime scene at the Queens Museum. It detailed the exposition, the evidence found on the scene, the cause of death of the four guards, and, like all the rest, it pinned Magnus as the prime suspect.

"I'm ordering Chinese for dinner, do you want to stay?" Alec asked casually.

Magnus's first reaction to that question was to almost drop the file he was supposed to be reading, but fortunately for him, he caught it before he could embarrass himself in front of the agent and just pretended to close it. "Your treat?"

"Evidently." Alec said, rolling his eyes...again.

Magnus smiled, wondering if one day this man would stop rolling his eyes at him, but realizing he really didn't want that. It was part of who Alec was, and he liked him—rolling eyes or not. "Okay."

Alec didn't say anything else and just called to order the food, not even asking Magnus what he wanted. Magnus didn't complain, though, the last two times they had dined together Magnus had ordered the food without asking, he supposed Alec could have this one for a little change.

"So...the cases," Alec said after hanging up, "for us it's clear there's no obvious connection between the three, but do you think there could be one?"

Magnus shook his head. "Just that they were executed by the same man."

"What about the diamond and the sculpture, could they be connected somehow?"

Magnus shook his head again. "Impossible, both are very valuable pieces, yes, but they have no connection whatsoever."

"Okay, so if there's no connection then to be able to solve this mess we'll have to take each case and isolate it." Alec said, grabbing his laptop from the coffee table and opening it to take some notes. "The first two cases, we've already discussed them over the phone, so let's focus on the last one, why steal that sculpture? What's so important about it?" He asked, and Magnus smiled, it was clear that when the agent was working on his cases he was in his element.

"Well, for starters this sculpture isn't just an ordinary sculpture, Alexander." Magnus explained. "'L'Homme qui marche I' or 'The Walking Man I,' in English, used to be the most expensive sculpture ever sold in an auction until May 2015, when another work by the same artist, Alberto Giacometti, more specifically 'L'Homme au doigt' or 'The Pointing Man,' supplanted it."

"Okay, so it's safe to say that thanks to the robbery the piece probably increased its value on the black market, so we're talking about almost $300 million dollars or so, but as far as we know this criminal isn't selling anything yet, so that's of no help right now, what else do you know? What makes this piece so interesting?"

"It could be a lot of things." Magnus said sincerely.

"Like what?"

"Well, I don't know if you knew this, but this piece has five twin sisters, and four older brothers."

Alec frowned, and Magnus couldn't help but laugh.

"There are six limited edition copies of the sculpture and four artist's proofs." Magnus explained. "That makes a total of ten cast bronze sculptures, six completely identical and four slightly different, hmmm, more...rustic. The artist's proofs are the first castings to come out of the mold when an artist decides to make a new piece, so they aren't that valuable, but the limited editions always are, especially if you have them all."

"But he only got one." Alec said.

"I know."

"Do you think he'll go after the other ones?"

"I don't know."

"Would you have gone after the other ones?" Alec rephrased.

"It depends, if all I wanted to get out of this score was money, then yes, I would have tried to get them all, even the artist's proofs," Magnus admitted, "but if I had been after this just for the aesthetic value of it, then no, I wouldn't have tried to get the others, but I would definitely have gone after the one this bastard took."

"Why?"

"Of the complete set of six, the second edition was the most valuable one since it was sold to a private collector." Magnus explained.

"Who, by the way, paid over a hundred million dollars for it. Seriously, what is it with rich people and art? That piece wasn't even that good."

"Excuse me!?" Magnus exclaimed, almost offended on behalf of the Swiss artist.

"What? It's true, it's just a silly bronze sculpture of a walking man, what's so special about it?"

"That silly bronze sculpture, as you call it, represents more than a walking man, that piece depicts a lone man in mid-stride with his arms hanging at his side in a brilliant way. The piece is often described as both a humble image of an ordinary man, and a powerful symbol of humanity. The world's best art critics say that Giacometti managed to capture the natural equilibrium of the stride and represented it as a symbol of a man's own life force." Magnus explained. "Did you know that in 1960, Giacometti was asked to be part of a public project by the Chase Manhattan Plaza, which consisted of planting bronze figures outside the building? He created several sculptures for that project, 'The Walking Man I,' included, but later he struggled with the project and eventually abandoned the commission. However, in 1961, he cast the life-size work in bronze and exhibited it at the Venice Biennale a year later. This piece was created at the high point of this artist's mature period, Alexander, and it represents the pinnacle of his experimentation with the human form. The piece is considered one of his most important works and one of the most iconic images of Modern art." He concluded.

Alec was looking at him with a funny expression on his face. He was smiling, but not in a common way, he looked bemused? Surprised? Magnus wasn't sure.

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

"I was wondering...do you just happen to know all there is to know about literally everything?" Alec asked, and what surprised Magnus the most wasn't the question, but the fact that it was genuine, the agent did want to know the answer to that.

"I like to know things, Alexander, I already told you that once, I've always been like that. Since I was a little boy I always had a book in front of me, then with the internet and stuff, well, I just had more sources to get information that interests me."

"Well, I'm impressed, you're like, hmmm, like-"

"Like what?"

"Like a human version of Google."

Magnus burst out laughing as he hadn't done in years, and the best part? Alec joined him, laughing with him or at him—Magnus wasn't really sure—for what felt like hours but was probably only a few minutes. When the laughing fit ceased, Magnus's stomach hurt and there were some tears in his eyes.

"Well, darling," Magnus said, still trying to control his breathing, "I've been accused of a lot of things in my life, but never of resembling a human version of a powerful Internet search engine, you can add that fact about me to your little blackboard, I'm sure your boss will be very impressed when you mention that detail about me."

"I will." Alec said, still smiling.

Magnus was going to say something more to keep this light conversation going, but in that moment the food arrived, and Alec stood up to open the door, quickly paying for it and handing Magnus the bag while he went to the kitchen to get something to drink.

"Here, it's not the best wine there is," Alec said, placing a bottle of white wine on the coffee table and offering Magnus a glass, "but I think it will do. It's not like we're going to eat gourmet or something."

Magnus hesitated, eying the glass cautiously, not because of the clearly cheap wine, he really didn't care about that, but because grabbing that glass meant giving Alec something he'd wanted for years.

"Just grab the damn glass, okay? I'm not going to run your prints, I'm not stupid." Alec said, when he realized that Magnus had no intention of accepting the wine. "How do you expect me to explain to the Bureau that you just happened to be at my home? I can't do it, I've been very vocal with my refusal to accept your involvement in the last three cases, if they discover that you've been here, they are going to think that I'm trying to protect you. And I'm not—just for the record."

Magnus smiled. "Good point." He said, finally grabbing the glass. "So you've been very vocal, huh? May I ask why?"

"Because it's the right thing to do...you're a criminal, yes, but you're not a murderer. Those deaths aren't yours to pay."

Magnus smiled shyly, trying to drown with the wine that funny feeling that was forming, for the second time in the day, in the pit of his stomach. "You're the most honorable man I've ever met, Alexander, did you know that?"

Alec blushed and busied himself with his food, suddenly finding the lid of the food container quite entertaining.

"Why is it so hard for you to accept a compliment?" Magnus dared to ask. It had happened repeatedly during the times that they'd been together. Magnus said something nice about Alec's physical appearance or personality, and the agent, without fail, blushed like a tomato—a cute tomato, but still. "Surely a man as handsome and successful as yourself is used to them, be honest...how many hearts have you broken in this city so far, huh?"

Alec laughed nervously, but didn't answer.

"That many, huh?" Magnus said. "Well, I can't say I'm surprised, with that face and the important position you have in the force, I bet you get a lot of dates, there must be a long list of people waiting for an opportunity to be with you."

Alec chuckled.

"So...how many?"

"I'm not going to answer that."

"Right...a gentleman never tells." Magnus smiled. "Are you with someone right now?"

"No." Alec said. "Why do you have to ask such personal questions?"

"Because I don't like to eat in silence and you never talk unless I ask you something, and since we were talking about your problem with accepting compliments, I don't know, the topic just seemed appropriate."

"I don't have a problem accepting compliments."

"Yes, you do." Magnus said. "And I think you shouldn't, people often mean what they say when they are complimenting someone, at least I do."

Alec blushed again and just kept eating to avoid responding. That shyness was adorable to some extent, but it worried Magnus that this man, who he found so interesting and intriguing, thought so little about himself.

"Can I ask you something?" Alec asked.

"Of course, I'm just not sure if you'll get an answer, you know how this thing between us works, but by all means...ask away, darling."

"Earlier, when you arrived, you mentioned your mother, I couldn't help noticing the past tense you used when you talked about her, is she...dead?"

Magnus just nodded.

"I'm sorry."

"No reason to be, it happened a long time ago." Magnus said, trying not to show much emotion. He didn't like to talk about his mother. It was a part of him that he liked to keep locked up.

"Do you miss her?"

"No." Magnus said.

"You don't like to talk about her, do you?"

"That's correct."

"It's okay, we can talk about something else, I could, I don't know, ask you random questions and put your knowledge to the test."

Magnus frowned in confusion. "Is this your way of proving that I'm not as smart as I claim to be, or are you just trying to ask me stuff to avoid answering my questions about your life?"

"Both…?" Alec said tentatively.

Magnus laughed. "Okay, shoot, but just for the record, I'm even smarter than I claim to be, and like it or not, one day you'll answer all my questions in full detail and without even blinking, you'll see."

Alec rolled his eyes with a smile, but didn't refute the statement, he just started asking random questions about science, history, art, literature, and whatever thing came to his mind. Magnus answered each and every one of them without failing, giving him as many facts as he could—hows, whens, wheres, whys—whatever Alec asked, he had an answer for it.

Time flew by and the night slipped away like water through fingers. One hour, two, three...six, by the time Magnus realized, the sun was already seeping through the windows and casting shadows on the floor—they had been up all night just talking, well, drinking and talking.

"I didn't know that." Alec said after Magnus ended his explanation about color wavelengths and why the sky changed of color throughout the day.

"Well, now you do." Magnus said, falling into a peaceful silence. They could hear the city starting to wake up, the birds singing to the new day. "Does this count as a third date?" He asked, attributing his boldness to the fact that he hadn't slept at all and had had one too many glasses of wine.

Alec didn't reply.

"I'll take your silence as a yes." Magnus said, smiling at the agent who was as red as a cherry. "Well, I had a great time, really, but unfortunately I have to go. I'm like a vampire, daylight is dangerous for me. Besides, your siblings might come looking for you at any moment and that would be extremely awkward, don't you agree?"

"How do you-"

"Relax, okay, I know they live in the same building, next to you to be more precise. Anyway, feel free to use your new phone whenever you want, either way I'll be in touch, and thanks again for a wonderful night." Magnus said, waving goodbye and climbing down the window.

"Bye, Alexander." He added, dramatically blowing the agent a kiss and rushing down the emergency stairs.

Magnus was so distracted and out of himself that he failed to notice the man in the black cloak who had been following him since the day before and who, by the way, had seen everything he had done—when he had arrived, how long he had spent there, and most importantly, which apartment he had visited.

o-o-o-o-o

Alec closed the window after Magnus disappeared down the stairs, and flopped on his couch with a loud thud, using his hands to cover his face and conceal the silly smile that he was certain was gracing his face at that very moment. He had had the best of times with Magnus and, although overall it had been a very good day with his siblings and Clary's family, he couldn't deny that what had him smiling like a fool was the evening he had just spent with the criminal.

Magnus was really something else, and after these weeks they'd spent talking almost non-stop and the 'dates' they had had, it was stupid to keep denying that he found the man completely fascinating and utterly irresistible. He kind of liked him, well, not kind of, he liked him. Period. They had a lot in common and yet they were complete opposites, and that made their time together feel like a roller coaster ride—scary, uncertain, thrilling, surprising...breathtaking.

Alec had never felt comfortable with anyone before the way he seemed to feel with the criminal. Maybe it was because with him he didn't have to meet any expectations or pretend to be someone he was not, none expected anything from the other, they were who they were and it worked. It worked to the extent that tonight Alec had not only invited him to stay for dinner, which incidentally he had never done before, but he hadn't even thought about arresting him, not even once—not to mention that, by accident, he had called him by his name.

He was so screwed.

He was losing focus and letting that attraction, interest, or whatever he was feeling cloud his senses and take control of the situation, and he couldn't allow it, he had to stop it before it was too late.

The problem, however, was that he didn't know how. How could he stop something he didn't even know what it was? He had no idea what was happening to him. He just knew that there was something about that man, something Alec couldn't explain, that drew him in, like a moth to the light. Magnus was so smart and schooled that every time he spoke Alec was caught under some sort of spell in which all he could do was listen, listen to whatever this man had to say—good or bad. He was so different from the people he'd met in his life and from the bad guy he thought he was that he-

A knock on the door pulled Alec out of his reverie.

Absentmindedly, he rose from the couch and opened the door without even bothering to check who it was. It was his sister, Izzy, who greeted him with a broad smile on her face that died all too soon.

"Alec, what the hell?" She questioned, pointing to Alec's body. Alec was still wearing the same clothes as the day before. "Why aren't you ready? And, why are you still wearing yesterday's clothes?"

Alec flinched. He had momentarily forgotten that every Sunday, almost without fail, he and his sister went for a run through Central Park. Sometimes Jace joined them, but he never seemed to have the energy to wake up so early on Sunday mornings.

"I...I…" Alec stuttered as his sister made her way inside his home.

"Wait a second." Izzy said, stopping dead in her tracks after crossing the threshold. "Did you have someone over?" She asked, staring at the bottle of wine, the two empty glasses, and the food containers that were on the coffee table.

Alec panicked, trying to come up with an excuse to deny what was obvious, but there was no point, was it? There were two empty glasses and two food containers, saying that he had been alone all night would be worse than admitting a half truth.

"Maybe?"

"Oh my God!" She squealed with delight, quickly leading Alec to one of the couches and practically forcing him to sit down. Alec was twice her size, but his sister was a very strong woman. "Today we're going to skip the running thing and instead, you, big brother, are going to talk to your favorite sister and give her all the gossip about this man. After all, it's not like we really need to go exercise, right? We're hot! But come, on! Spill the beans! I'm impatiently waiting."

"There's nothing to spill." Alec said. He was already regretting having somehow accepted that he had had someone over.

"Of course there is! For starters you just confirmed what Jace and I had suspected for days, you're seeing someone!"

"I'm not seeing anyone." Alec said alarmed.

"Yes, you are, stop denying it! Don't think we haven't noticed your sudden change of mood, especially in the last two weeks, you've been acting different, Alec. Besides, you never invite people here! So if you invited him, then he's not just some random guy you found on the streets. Come on, Alec! Speak! I wanna know e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g!" She said, clapping excitedly. "Who is he? And don't you dare say no one because then I'll put you through a polygraph test and we both know how bad you are at it!"

"Okay fine, I'm seeing someone, happy?" Alec admitted, knowing that although it wasn't exactly true, he had to give her at least something or she would be all over him every hour of every day of every week until he admitted it. She could be quite stubborn when she wanted to know something. Not in vain she was primarily responsible for conducting the interrogations back in the office.

"Ahhhhhh!" She screamed, almost deafening him.

"Really?" Alec said, covering his ears of the annoying sound. "Was that really necessary? You just woke up the entire building, the whole neighborhood, Isabelle!"

"You know I never hold back, I'm happy and excited for you, and I was just expressing it, so tell me...who is he? What's his name? Do I know him? Please tell me he's not someone from the office."

"From the office?" Alec frowned, really confused by that. Who could like him from the office? Except for his team, everyone in there either hated him because he was the boss after the captain, or because they thought he was just some spoiled brat who had gotten his position because daddy had pulled a few strings for him. He knew what people said about him behind his back.

"Alec, you'd be surprised to know how many agents, men and women alike—if I may add—would be willing to give up their badges just to be with you in a more...intimate way."

"Well, I don't like women, you know that and please...stop lying."

"I'm not lying, but I'm not going to give you names either because then you'll just start acting all weird and stuff around them and make work really awkward, but if you pay attention, you could probably notice it, it's actually very obvious."

Alec rolled his eyes. "Whatever you say, Izzy," he said, pretending that the fact that there were people who found him attractive in the office didn't intrigue him in the slightest, "I'll go take a shower now."

"No, no, no, no, no, no, no." She said, practically climbing on top of him to keep him from moving. "You aren't going to move from this couch until you've told me every last detail there is to know about your secret boyfriend, got it? If you don't start talking like right now, then I'm going to go wake up Jace and ask him to come over too, and then you'll have to deal with the two of us together, so it's your choice, mister!"

Alec sighed, having Izzy was more than enough already, he didn't want to add Jace to the mix. Sometimes his partner was better than his sister at reading him and discovering his darkest secrets. "Just to make things clear, he's not my boyfriend."

"Okay, but you're seeing each other, so who is he?"

"I can't tell you who he is." He said, resigned.

"Why not?"

"Because…" Alec said, trying to come up with something convincing to tell her, "because we just started seeing each other and I don't want to jinx it." He lied.

"Okay fine, I didn't know you were superstitious, but okay, I can understand that...just tell me, do I know him?"

"Yes." Alec thought, but quickly shook his head. "No."

"Where did you meet him? How old is he? What does he do for a living?" Izzy started to ask, bombarding him with question after question, but Alec had stopped paying attention after the third one. If he were really seeing Magnus in the context his sister was imagining, he wouldn't be able to tell her the answer to any of those questions anyway, especially not what he did for a living.

"So…?"

"You asked a lot of questions at once, Iz, you can't expect me to answer them all right away, can you?"

"Of course! Come on, start talking, we have all day...I'll put the coffee."

Alec sighed and started to share with his sister a twisted version of his last three encounters with Magnus, sharing a bit of information about the dates and how they had gone, but leaving the criminal's name and the details about their agreement completely out of it. During his story, Alec allowed himself to get excited about certain things that until now he had just kept to himself, like the flower that Magnus had left for him and the books he had given him. His sister, as per usual, wasn't holding anything back and was jumping up and down, showing how excited she was. And although, technically, what he had shared was not classified as a lie, Alec still felt bad about 'omitting' the truth to her. They had always been very open and honest with each other. He would never forget that Izzy had been the first person he had come out to and that she had been very nice and supportive about it, but still, he couldn't tell her the whole truth, at least not yet. So when he finished with his story, he just smiled at her and hoped she'd settle for that.

"Alec, I'm so happy for you!" She exclaimed, hugging him tightly.

Alec returned the smile and closed his eyes, wondering at what point of the road his life had become this big mess full of lies and complications.

o-o-o-o-o

Magnus arrived to his home feeling as light as a feather. Maybe it was because of all the wine he had drunk or the amazing company he had had during the night, or maybe both, but he really didn't care, he was happy as he hadn't been in a very long time and that was all that mattered. He had had such a great time with Alexander that he could hardly believe it, not that the last two times that they had been face-to-face hadn't been great, but tonight everything had been very different. Perhaps it was due to the new familiarity between them product of all those phone calls and texts in the past weeks, or simply because the agent seemed to have been in a very good mood when he had come home, but either way, Magnus had loved every minute of all the hours he had spent at the agent's house and felt that nothing and no one could ruin his mood. Not even his best friend, who by the way, had been waiting for him at his place when he had arrived.

"Did you give it to him?" Ragnor asked, the moment Magnus entered the loft.

"I did." Magnus said, hanging his coat by the door.

"It took you longer than I expected, I was starting to worry. I thought I'd have to go look for you in the nearest supermax prison or something."

"I stayed for dinner." Magnus said with a smile.

"It's 7 a.m." Ragnor pointed out.

"And then for some drinks." Magnus added.

"At his place?"

"At his place." Magnus confirmed. "He invited me."

"Really?"

"Yes...I think he likes me." He added with another smile.

"Careful, Magnus." Ragnor said in a cautious tone. "Those are very, very dangerous waters. He's still a fed, my friend, and not just any fed. He's the one who's been going after you for years. Maybe you're right and he likes you, but he still wants you behind bars."

"I know."

"Do you?" Ragnor inquired. "Because I think you're starting to forget that."

"Okay, you're worried, I get that, but don't be, okay? You know I can take care of myself." He said calmly. He had been serious about nothing ruining his mood, not even Ragnor's endless lectures about safety, mistakes, and risks.

"I just don't want you to ruin yourself because of him, that's all."

"I know." Magnus smiled. He knew that Ragnor's concerns came from a very good place in his heart. They had been friends for years, Magnus knew that if the roles were inverted he would be probably lecturing Ragnor as well. "And I really appreciate your concern, my friend, probably more than you can imagine, but everything is fine, okay? You don't need to worry about me or Alexander. I know what I'm doing." He said, trying to reassure his friend, and himself too.

"Do you remember when we first learned that there was a new fed following your every step? Do you remember what you told me about him?" Ragnor asked.

"Of course I remember, that if we weren't careful, this agent could be literally the bane for Magnus Bane."

"Well, be careful because at that time we laughed at the silly reference to your name, but now? If you're not careful, I think it could really come true, my friend."

Magnus didn't reply because he knew that his friend was telling nothing but the truth, but unfortunately or not, that advice had come a day late.

"Oh dear God!" Ragnor exclaimed when realization hit him. Magnus was one hundred percent sure that there was something on his face, eyes, or whatever that was giving him away. "You like him, like him, don't you?"

"No." Magnus said, but he didn't sound convincing even to his own ears.

He had always admired Alec not only for what he had already accomplished at such a young age, but because he was smart and driven, responsible and determined, and he admired those qualities, but getting to know him, to really know him in these past weeks had made him realize that the agent was much more than what he had imagined he would be. And yeah, maybe there was some kind of truth in what Ragnor had just said. He liked him. How much? He still didn't know, but there was definitely something there and it was growing...rapidly.

"You're so screwed, did you know that?" Ragnor said, looking at Magnus intently.

That was some of the good things about their friendship, they knew each other so well that they didn't need to have full conversations about certain topics. A look, a silence, a word, or a simple expression, and they already knew what the other was thinking, or in this case, feeling.

"I know, my friend, I know."

"And?"

"And nothing...I'll be careful, okay?"

"And you'll tell me if something happens between you two, right?"

"Of course, you know that, but don't worry, nothing's going to happen. And now...how are things going with the printer for the bonds?" Magnus asked, trying to change the subject as subtly as he could.

"I got us a place near here. It's not in the best of conditions, we'll have to clean it and things like that, but it's big enough for the printer...it used to be an old fire station."

"Uhhh, I like that. Who told you about that place?"

"Malcolm...we could go see it today if you want. Oh, and the printer? Raphael got one already, we'll have to assemble it and probably fix it, but they assured him it's from Spain and from the same year that the bonds were printed, so we won't have any problems."

"Excellent news, my friend!" Magnus exclaimed with a huge smile. This day was just getting better and better. "Do you know when will the pieces arrive?"

"In the next couple of days." Ragnor said. "Well, that's what Raphael said, we ordered it yesterday. It's going to costs us a lot of money, I had to clear some of our assets to pay for it, but it will be worth it. We'll make ten times more than what we have ever had."

"Freedom is never cheap, my friend, but you're right, we'll make more than we have ever had. Now, I would love to go see the place you got for us and start cleaning it, but I'm really tired, so I'm just gonna go to sleep, okay? Thanks for stopping by and checking on me, I really appreciate it, but you've seen it yourself, I'm back and in one piece. I'll call you later, okay?"

"Okay." Ragnor said, walking to the door.

Magnus watched him go, but quickly got distracted when one of his phones started to buzz in his pocket. He fished it out and smiled when he noticed it was Alexander's phone. Well, not exactly Alec's phone, but the one he was going to use to communicate exclusively with him.

"My sister is here, so naturally I can't go to sleep, but we started watching this documentary about art, did you know that the only painting sold by Vincent Van Gogh in his lifetime was The Red Vineyard which was bought by the Belgian artist Anna Boch?"

Magnus laughed. What was this? Was this man really trying to educate him? Hadn't he learned anything from their night together? Magnus knew a lot about art, of course he knew that fact about Vincent Van Gogh.

"Alexander, my area of expertise is art, are you seriously trying to educate me on the subject?" Magnus was typing when he felt Ragnor's eyes on him. "Did you forget something?" He asked his friend, looking at him after sending the text message.

Ragnor just shook his head. "No, but I meant what I said earlier, be careful, okay?"

"I will." Magnus said, trying to ignore the look that Ragnor was sending him.

"Okay, well, I'll see you later."

"Sure. Bye, my friend." Magnus said, distracted—Alec had just replied.

"Of course not! But did you know that in 1961, one of Henri Matisse's paintings, Le Bateau, was hung upside down at the MoMa for 46 days before anyone noticed?"

Magnus laughed. He didn't know that, but he suspected that Alec had just googled 'curious facts about art' to try to impress him after his failed attempt with the information about Van Gogh, but either way, he let him know that he had succeeded.

"See? You don't know everything." Alec replied.

Magnus laughed again, typing yet another text. Apparently, going to sleep wasn't going to happen any time soon.