The last decade had been a baby boom of sorts, with countless interracial marriages leading to a new generation of nephilim with both a mundane and shadowhunter parent. Alec tried to remember whose kids were whoses as he listened to them laugh and play. Little Robert, Adele and Sydney were among the oldest and seemed to be trying to keep the rest under control. Robert looked nothing like his grandfather, but rather resembled his mother instead, with hints of Simon around his eyes and in his smile. Robert was currently running after two other children, his little sisters, if Alec wasn't much mistaken. Jace's first born, Adele, had inherited her father's blonde hair, but she had Clary's defiant independence. Adele was the furious defender of her little strawberry blonde brothers. Sydney mostly reminded Alec of Elizabeth, that cool calm confidence he so admired in her. Sydney was an only child as her biological father had married one of the mixed blooded nephilim less than a year after her birth. Alec was sure his other children were among those playing, but he couldn't name them.
As one would expect prior to a baby boom there had been an influx in weddings. Alec had attended the ceremonies of Jonathan and Rose only months after the shield fell. Next Alec witnessed the ceremonies of Jocelyn and Lucian's wedding. Lucian's sister Amatis had married Victor a few years later. It had taken a while for the people to become used to seeing the king standing beside a man, and longer still for that king to be standing beside a warlock. Alec knew he should have probably waited longer than five years to change such a law, but his patience hadn't lasted that long. Alec had married Magnus in a joint ceremony with Elizabeth and Josey the day after the laws were changed.
Absently playing with the ring on his finger, Alec spotted Tessa moving among the children, watching over them. Alec knew Ragnor to be around somewhere, though that warlock was far less predictable than most and he prefered to teach older children who could learn the complicated knowledge he had to offer rather than the little toddlers who wanted to pinch his green skin to see if it was real.
When the little warlock girl with purple hair and scales appeared Alec just knew his son was around here somewhere. The two of them were rarely apart these days. They'd been friends for most of their lives, but Max was approaching his teenage years now and Alec was expected it to blossom into something else. He knew it wouldn't be long now before his son stopped growing, and became frozen in time just like his husband.
It had been over ten years since the shield fell. Ten years since warlock's had taken up residence within the Palace walls. Ten years of living with the man he loved and just a mere ten hours left before the kingdom no longer had a king.
Of all the things Alec had done during his reign, dissolving the monarchy had probably been the hardest change for his people to accept. As Alec sat and watched the children play, he knew up at the Palace all the adults shadowhunters in his kingdom were lining up to vote. The voters had to prove they had the blood by touching a weapon of the angels'. It was the only restriction for being given the vote. Alec would have allowed humans and warlocks to vote, but he felt like with all the changes already he had to leave something alone. He was sure in time they would also be granted a voice. Those of mixed blood could be called to lead now and that was a great improvement from only those of a single family tree.
Once the voter had proven themselves by making an Angel's weapon glow with their touch, they would pick up the little magic orb. The Orb not only kept the records, but also prevented the same person from voting twice. It couldn't be fooled or tricked into given false information and it was similar to the old shield and portal in that it was composed of permanent magic, too advanced for most warlocks. The Orb had, of course, been created by Ragnor Fell.
"Are you going to miss it?" It was his husband's voice. Alec pulled his mind back out of his thoughts and turned to smile at Magnus.
"No," Alec replied, gesturing for Magnus to sit beside him. "I'm going to miss you."
"I'm right here, Alexander," Magnus replied with a smile. "You will not get rid of me so easily."
"But time will rid you of me," Alec replied, resting his head on Magnus's shoulders. Alec still looked young, but ten years had been enough for him to realize that time would all too soon separate him from his family.
"I know," Magnus whispered, reaching up to stroke Alec's hair. "I have always known that. If there were a way to do it, I would choose to age with you, rather than let time separate us."
"I know," Alec sighed reaching out to take the warlock's hand. After a moment's silence he added, "Time meant nothing to me until I met you."
"It's strange," Magnus smiled. "For I know exactly what you mean."
"I told you I am selfish," Alec whispered. "Even if you grew old with me it wouldn't be enough. Just one lifetime with you isn't enough." Magnus turned Alec to face him and kissed his husband sweetly there on the park bench.
"Maybe it's possible," Magnus whispered as they broke apart. Alec just pulled his husband's lips back to his own. Somehow he knew that it wasn't. If it had been surely Tessa would have found a way for her, Jem and Will. If it were possible one or both of them would still be here with her. Alec remembered once that he'd thought about living forever in Magnus's memory. The concept seemed so wrong to him now. When he was gone Alec didn't want Magnus to be sad like Tessa. He wanted Magnus to keep living, or at least a part of him did. The more selfish part of Alec wanted Magnus to never know love like theirs again so Alec would remain unique in Magnus's heart.
"Eww. Gross dad smooches," Max's voice reached their ears. Alec smiled into the kiss then he turned to face his teenaged son.
"Oh, yeah," Alec replied. "I bet if Sarah gave you the time of day you wouldn't be so against smooches." When Max blushed it was always quite something to witness. The red in his cheeks turned purple against his blue skin. Max muttered something under his breath then turned and joined the other kids in the park. It had been Tessa who suggested they build this playground near the Palace, but close enough for the mundane children to use it as well. Alec had loved the idea as well as the design. There were great arching climbing bars that lead to slides, swing sets, all manner of cubbies to hide in, and sand to build with.
"What do you think of Sarah?" Alec asked his husband once their son was out of earshot. "Do you think she's good for him?"
"They've known each other since they were three," Magnus replied, flatly.
"So?" Alec asked, concerned nonetheless. "This is a whole new scenario here. I think Max likes her."
"I am sure they will be fine," Magnus smiled, with a slight chuckle.
They spent the rest of the morning on that bench enjoying each other's company. They then returned to their king's chamber to make love in it one last time before they could no longer call it theirs. Tonight it would belong to the new leader of this country. It was strange.
Alec had planned and worked toward this day for so long, yet he found himself counting the hours until he was no longer the king of Alicante. If he'd died while the monarchy had been in tact Izzy would have been his successor, but Alec sensed she would have had a hard time getting things done. Though women had been legally allowed to rule for over a decade now Alec suspected his people would select a man. The culture hadn't quite caught up with the law yet. He would be thrilled if Jocelyn, Maryse, Izzy, Lillian, Amtis, Clary, Kathryn, Natasha, Elizabeth or any of the female nephilim got the job though he believed they weren't the most likely to win it.
Somehow Alec couldn't see shy Simon winning the people's vote. Alec could easily picture Jace or Lucian winning. The people remembered Lucian from when he had been one of King Robert's advisors. Alec was sure the people would be able to put their faith in him. Jace as well had proven himself in public ways in the last decade. He and his brother-in-law Jonathan had taken to walking through the streets and speaking to the citizens about the goings on in the Palace. It had been Rose's idea. Alec had come to know Jonathan's wife as a caring and generous woman. It amazed him that she still looked at her husband the same way she always had, even after all five of their children had been born.
Though Alec valued Jace and Jon's efforts and has seen the great impact such open communication had had on endearing the people to all the changes the Palace was making, Alec secretly hoped someone of mixed blood got the job. If not a woman then what would show the progress of this country better than it's being lead by a mixed shadowhunter. In a mere decade mixed blooded nephilim will have gone from shunned and forgotten to chosen by the people to lead the nation.
The only potential disaster would be if Valentine was voted in, though in that case Alec might just ask Ragnor to reboot the Orb. Alec knew Valentine understood how wrong his actions had been, but he still didn't trust the man. Alec could remember vividly the day this had happened. After another of Ragnor's lectures about the nature of the world, Alec could seen in the prisoner's gaze something click in Valentine's mind, his world view shifting before Alec's eyes.
"My life is made of lies," Valentine had whispered as if the very ground beneath his feet were crumpling. After that he'd been much more receptive to learning what he hadn't been able to comprehend before. Within a year of this Valentine's sentence had ended. Though Valentine resented his wife dissolving their marriage on the grounds of his being a traitor and remarrying his best friend, the newly released Valentine had found comfort in his children and grandchildren.
Alec brought his thoughts back to the present. Their time was up. With a flick of his wrist Magnus cleaned the room, leaving it spotless for whoever came next. Taking his husband's outstretched hand Alec walked from the room for the last time. They moved in silence through the Palace and out through the front doors, where a huge crowd waited for them. A magically erected stage had been created that morning. With over a dozen warlocks in residence Alec had quite gotten used to magic being a daily part of life in the Palace. Reaching the stand, Alec addressed his audience.
"Thank you for the support and understanding you have shown me in my time as your leader," Alec began. "But we are here today to witness the end of all that. I, Alexander Lightwood, will be the last King of Alicante. Today I step down and in my place there will be the leader of your choosing. This person will have five years to impress you before you once again must choose to either put this person back in power or chose another in their place. All those with the Angel's blood have been granted a vote and a chance to be voted for. But hear me when I saw this system is new and not perfect. It discriminates against the humans and warlocks among us. It is my hope that one day this will not be so. This is only the beginning." Someone standing on Alec's other side handed him the orb. It was small, about the size of his palm, murky black, with hints of bright colours within its depths. If Alec hadn't known it was magic he would have said the orb contained some kind of liquid metal.
Alec closed both hands around the orb as he followed the instructs of its creator. Using his thoughts to guide the magical object Alec asked for the results of the vote. To his great surprise he received two answers. The orb had counted votes all day while people touched it and thought of who they wanted to lead them. Though Alec had taken himself out of the running it seemed the unconscious minds of his people hadn't picked up on this fact. Though Alec had technically received no votes the orb was telling him exactly what his people thought of his leadership. A smile spread over his face as a single tear ran down Alec's cheek.
"Your new leader is Victor Graymark," Alec called out to the crowd. He couldn't believe he hadn't considered Lucian's brother-in-law in his thoughts on the winner. Victor had been among the first of mixed blood to be found and brought to the Palace. He'd taken his wife's old shadowhunter name when they'd married rather than keep his commoner one, but he was still that strong young man Alec had met who'd worked day and night to learn the sword so he wouldn't have to become a fisherman like his step father. The same man who had only been persuaded to abandon his king's side by direct order. Even that hadn't been enough. Alec smiled as he recalled having to guilt Victor into leaving during the evacuation before Valentine's defeat over ten year ago. He remembered the look of wonder on Victor's face when Amatis agreed to marry him. She was a little older than him, but Alec had never been one to judge. In the last decade, Victor had become the leader in weapon's training, been the brains behind many successful project ideas, and taken the lead on dozens of missions. Alec had come to rely on him like a lieutenant just as much as Izzy, Jace or Jonathan. He should have known it would be Victor.
Alec watched as Victor stood up, clearly surprised beyond belief. His wife and two kids encouraged him forward and soon Victor was walking up to take Alec's place. Alexander's last act as King was to hand the orb to Victor and step down off the stage. Standing to the side of the stage and out of the way, Alec took his husband's hand again. As he listened to the heartfelt and genuine words of Victor Graymark promising to earn the gift they'd given him today and bring about a prosperous future for Alicante, he thought everything was perfect except for one thing.
The only cloud left in Alec's perfect blue sky was his mortality.
I have to confess I will be very glad when this story ends. Which is probably why I am writing it so fast. It's been such a very long time since I was only updating one fanfic. Once these are done I will have more time to work on my originals. :) Hope you enjoyed it.
Sneak Peek Chapter 21:
"My back is not enjoying all this bending and lifting," Alec complained, standing up to stretch his sore muscles. "I'm not quite as nimble as I once was. All that sitting behind a desk instead of being in the field during his reign as king hadn't help.
"It's strange to me," Ragnor mused. "How mortals can change." Why the ancient warlock had agreed to help with the plants Alec had no idea but Alec quite enjoying spending time with Ragnor. He was a very interesting man to speak with.
"I haven't changed that much," Alec argued, his arms crossing over his chest. "I'm only 35." Ragnor was clearly surprised by his tone.
"Didn't mean to offend," Ragnor smiled at him. "I have no concept of how these things work. To me any physical change seems unnatural."
"It's fine," Alec sighed, as he leaned down to get back to work. "I just wish their was all this change would stop."