So once upon a time I had a prompt for a 3x10 aftermath, Magnus in the alley with Alec and no magic, and then I accidentally deleted it, so I’m uh. Using this to bring it back! (I opted for Malec, here.)
Alec’s stable.
Jace had activated runes before he left, and he’d had a hard enough time leaving he’d almost walked right into the wall of the building going around the corner, trying to keep an eye on Alec and the way forward at the same time. He never would have torn himself away if Alec was really...
If Alec was...
Alec’s stable.
Not good, but not dying. Magnus keeps repeating that in his head, over and over, not dying, not dying.
Almost too late, but not quite.
Alec’s not quite conscious, and his breathing is too shallow, and Magnus is afraid to pull the arrow out, but he’s not dying.
Magnus hopes he’s not lying to himself.
Magnus holds Alec’s hand, ignores the way his other hand trembles as he smooths Alec’s hair back from his forehead, and he listens to him breathe. Alec’s eyes flutter, and his hand squeezes back, and then he’s still, his grip fading, but he’s still breathing.
Magnus wishes he could do something. He can’t even call Catarina, it’s not like he’d brought his cell phone to Edom, and he can’t make fire messages anymore, he can’t, he can’t...
He knows Alec’s probably got his phone, but he’s afraid to let go of Alec’s hand to look for it, afraid if he tries to move Alec to search his pockets he’ll hurt him more, afraid if he lets go Alec will let go, he’s afraid he’s crying but he can’t let go to wipe his cheeks.
He should, though. He should find Alec’s phone.
Everyone in the New York Institute has a...
Shit. He can’t even remember what it’s called. That thing where you just push the one button and it calls the Infirmary, so they can send a medic or call whichever Warlock’s on-call for the new contract with Lorenzo to offer healing magic.
Magnus can’t even call Nephilim-911, dear god he’s useless.
“Mm.” Alec makes a noise, not even close to a word, tension in his jaw and eyes too glassy as he tries to blink them open, and Magnus realizes his hand is holding too hard, his fingers tightening too much, makes himself relax his grip, swallows something close to another sob.
do you ever think about how magnus came back from edom and blasted the owl out of jace, and all the while he could see alec lying unmoving on the floor. he knew even as the magic was leaving his hands that it was the last he would ever wield. that there would be nothing left in him he could use to help alec. he stayed the course and defeated the owl all while knowing that when it was over, all he'd be able to do was run to alec and hope for the best. and yet he never faltered
That wasn’t very nice of Valentine to send his own son to Edom
Jeez no wonder Jonathan is the way he is - he’s got mommy and daddy issues out the ASS
Clary, what the hell was that? 🤨 Like did you really think head butting Jace and running while you’re cuffed was going to work?
Simon, don’t cry, cuz i don’t wanna cry again 😢
Alec: You’re gonna make it back. You hear me? Magnus: Why wouldn't I? Look what I have waiting for me. (staaahhp 😩)
Quick thinking with the glass, Clary, but ouch. You’re gonna need a tetanus shot after that lol
Simon and Becky are really making the tears flow right now! 😭
For a prince, Asmodeus has a pretty ramshackle house 😂 (also, he’s kind of a hoarder)
Definitely sobbing right now after that scene with Simon and his mom
Magnus: I’ve never once come here to ask you for anything. There must be something else I can give you. Asmodeus: Actually, my son, there is. Magnus: *oh fuck*
Simon: What am I gonna do with a steelie? Alec: Stelé. Simon: I’ve heard it both ways. (raise your hand if you pronounced it ‘stell’ when reading the books ✋🏼)
Oh god I don’t want to watch the Jalec fight 😣
Stop it! Don’t hurt Alec! 😫
*deep breaths*
Magnus should get some kind of award for (1) risking his life by going to Edom (2) asking a favor from a price of Hell (3) giving up his magic to save his boyfriend’s old crush
Why doesn’t the sunlight from Clary’s rune destroy Lilith? I know she’s a greater demon, but Simon’s mark can’t be the only way to destroy one
So what do you think happened to Clary? Dead? Alive but sent to Edom?
I actually planned this pretty well - now i can work on reading QoAaD 😁
And then be sad again once I finish it and have to wait till the end of February for more Shadowhunters
Do you guys want me to do this for the new episodes too??
Looking forward to that breakfast-in-bed scene 😍 *rubs hands together vigorously*
It took me forever to get around to actually doing this because a bitch was hurt, okay? Fuck. This whole episode was rough. Plus, I thought I had this in the queue, but it’s actually been sitting in my drafts since Thursday, so forgive me for being a temporary dumbass lol.
Let’s get started.
I’m going to begin with the scene we were all waiting for.
Right off the bat, I loved that Magnus told Alec more about his history with Asmodeus. He may be a greater demon, but he took Magnus in when he had no one else, and was the only person in the world he could relate to for a very long time. I think it was super important for Alec to know that, and to know that Magnus turning to his father for help after all this time was no easy choice.
Then, he finds out Magnus is going to Edom, and he can’t be the understanding boyfriend anymore. He can’t just stand there and nod, because there’s no fucking way he’d ever be okay with this.
Magnus cracks a joke about the cell service being terrible there (which I thought was interesting - more on that later), and Alec doesn’t find it funny, because “this is insane”.
Last week, I said I had a problem with Magnus asking Alec to tell him that Jace wasn’t worth it, but now that I’ve had the chance to watch the whole episode a few times over, the line wasn’t nearly as bad as we thought it would be. Magnus wasn’t “forcing” Alec to make a choice - he’d already made the choice for him, because he knows how much Jace means to him. He also knows that while Alec cares for Jace, he’d never bring himself to ask Magnus to do anything that would put him in danger. By stepping up and making his own decisions (like the grown ass, powerful ass man he is), he was giving Alec one less thing to worry about.
On top of that, we have to give Magnus a lot more credit, especially where Alec is concerned. While a lot of the choices he makes have a lot of connections to Alec, ultimately, Magnus makes decisions for himself. Deep down, I’m sure Alec understands that, but he’s got a one track mind, remember? He has a tendency to jump to conclusions when it comes to people he loves, and right now, Magnus is about to descent into hell to save his parabatai, and stop Lilith. That’s a lot to process within a couple of minutes.
(I’m horrible with explanations right now because I’m running off three hours of sleep, so forgive me if I’m confusing you.)
Then, we get the iconic scene we’ve been quoting for months.
Magnus is ready to go, but Alec isn’t quite ready to watch him leave.
“You’re gonna make it back, you hear me?”
The way Alec’s eyes move up and down Magnus’ face? As if he were committing every last detail to memory on the off chance that Magnus didn’t make it back?
Bitch, I almost passed out.
“Why wouldn’t I? Look what I have waiting for me.”
And Alec can’t do anything but kiss him, almost like he’s memorizing that too. Then, they pull away, but keep their eyes closed; they’re savoring that moment, because there’s a very real possibility it’ll be their last.
That got to me.
I want everyone to know that nothing about this was forced. Nothing.
Magnus did what he did because he chose to do it. He’s allowed to.
Remember that.
Moving on.
WE GET TO SEE ALEC WITH HIS BOW AND ARROW.
I may be the weakest Alec Lightwood stan in existence, but when I see my man with his favorite weapon, my Alec-is-about-to-commit-some-badassery senses start tingling, and I start yelling. I also turn my TV up dramatically, because you know I love dramatics.
Not only is he back in archer mode, but he’s talking to my newly crowned dynamic duo: Luke and Maryse.
Luke asks if he’s heard from Magnus, and for a minute, it’s like everything comes rushing back. He hesitates, but not for too long, because he can’t let them know that there’s anything wrong. I know it was Magnus’ choice to go to Edom, and there’s still a part of Alec that wants to save Jace no matter what, but it doesn’t change the fact that in Alec’s mind, Magnus being in hell and not right there by his side feels very wrong, in a way. Maryse makes that extremely gif worthy quote about Magnus waiting to make a dramatic entrance, and Alec does what he’s been doing since season one.
He takes every bit of the worry and anxiety he’s feeling, and locks it away to focus on the mission. A very dangerous mission that his mother is ready to take part in.
And of course, protective Alec makes an appearance to ask Maryse to sit this one out. I feel like it’s important to mention how seamless of a transition they seem to be making. Not too long ago, Maryse probably would’ve been the one calling the shots, and Alec would’ve made sure everything went according to plan. Now, he has to tell her to stay out of it, because it’s dangerous for everyone involved, let alone a woman who just recently lost her shadow hunting abilities.
Life comes at you fast, dude.
Next up, we get a little impatient Alec, who is also one of my faves. (Right up there with salty Alec.)
“Simon’s been in the building forever, what’s taking him so long?”
“Alec, it’s a high rise.”
I screamed because that is so Alec. Like, he doesn’t care if it’s two stories or twenty - hurry the hell up.
Izzy takes a look at the magic Lilith is using, and once again, Alec shows us how much he’s grown.
“With or without Magnus, we have to get Clary out of there.”
I’ve been saying I want their friendship to prosper, but THIS IS PEAK FRIENDSHIP. Clary’s in trouble, and Alec wants to save her. Not because of Jace, Izzy, Magnus, or even Luke. Alec wants to save Clary because she’s a friend.
Excuse me while I kick and scream in excitement over that, as well as that little exchange between Simon and Alec, who also need to join the BFFs club.
Okay. On to the hard shit.
[Note: Have any of you guys seen Deadpool? The first one, not the new one. Deadpool makes a comment about a superhero landing, and the Owl totally nailed it, only he’s not a superhero. He’s a villainous demon, but I thought I’d point it out anyway.]
As soon as the Owl lands in front of Alec, it takes him all of two seconds to get his bow ready. The last time he saw Jace, he was in tears, scared out of his mind. The time before that, he was in Magnus’ loft, talking shit to everybody.
Last time, he begged for death, and Alec refused to kill him. He isn’t going to make that mistake again, no matter what the Owl says to throw him off.
Then, the fighting starts, and the struggle is real, because the Owl knows him. He’s tapped into every corner of Jace’s mind, so he’s learned a lot, including Alec’s fighting style. They’re parabatai; they’re meant to be fighting together, letting one’s strengths cover for the other’s weaknesses. They’re not supposed to fight each other for real. For training purposes, yes, but not with the intent to kill.
Alec does that sexy ass backflip move and gets his arrows ready, and the Owl gets Jace’s blades out. I’ve mentioned Alec fighting defensively instead of offensively, and every time I spoke on it, I was thinking of this particular scene.
The Owl starts doing all these extra spin moves, and Alec dodges him every single time. He waits for an opportunity to present itself, and when it does, he takes it, stabbing the Owl in the knee with one of his arrows.
So not only is Alec the equivalent of a sniper with his bow and arrow, he can also use them up close and personal in hand-to-hand combat. I love a man with multiple skills!
Back to the fighting. They’re both kicking, swinging, and doing a whole lot of grunting, but nothing really happens until Alec stabs him again, this time in the arm. The Owl gets slash happy with the blades, but of course, he never cuts Alec, and Alec stabs him for the third time.
At this point, Alec is clearly tired of fighting this bitch, and then I started thinking: maybe that was the Owl’s plan all along. Say some stuff about tearing him apart with Jace’s hands, make him think he’s got the upper hand for a little bit, then pounce at the first sign of weakness. It’s rude, yet effective.
Then, the Owl does something to Alec that fucked me up mentally. I talked about it here. He broke Alec’s hand, and I felt it through the screen.
Anyone who’s ever broken a bone knows what I’m talking about.
Alec screams, and the pain is both physical and mental, because the bones in his wrist just made a noise no one ever wants to hear, and also because it’s his hand. An archer with a broken hand is like a car with no engine. It just doesn’t work.
The Owl gets Alec on the ground and starts talking shit (as usual), but this time, he’s holding one of Alec’s arrows, and he’s ready to kill him. Alec stops him, and starts talking to Jace, because he knows he’s still in there, and he’s crying, because his worst nightmare is playing out in front of his eyes.
Alec is on his back with one of his own arrows being shoved into his chest, and the only thing he wants is for Jace to know that it’s okay; he forgives him, and he’s sorry they couldn’t save him.
Selfless men just break my heart in the most exquisite of ways.
Then, Magnus king-of-saving-the-day Bane shows up, and we all breathe a little easier.
After he blasts the Owl back to whatever hellhole he crawled out of, he goes straight to Alec, who’s still lying there with an arrow in his chest, making jokes.
Earlier in the episode, when Magnus was preparing to go to Edom, he did the same thing, because he was trying to hide how terrified he was. Now, Alec is trying to hide his pain.
Literally everyone on this show picks up little things from one another.
Jace is finally back to himself, and runs over to active one of Alec’s runes. It could’ve been an iratze (you know, the magical rune that can apparently heal everything from a tiny cut to a broken spine), or maybe another rune to make him comfortable so he doesn’t hurt himself with every breath.
Magnus tells Jace he’ll take care of Alec, but before he leaves, he looks down at him, and Alec nods. He’s already reminded Jace that it wasn’t his fault, and now, he’s got the love of his life by his side. Even in the midst of a crisis, Alec hasn’t forgotten the mission. Their whole reason for being at that building.
Clary.
He was only meant to kill the Owl while Luke and Izzy went in to get Clary, and now that Jace is back, they still need to save her. So he nods, because even though it’s a shitty situation, they aren’t finished yet.
This episode just...ugh. My heart.
Alexander Lightwood deserves a thousand hugs and kisses, and all the love and protection this world has to offer.
Thanks for coming to my final Ted Talk for 3A. I can’t wait for August.
