( @shadowhunterbingo square: Teacher AU)
(Read on AO3)
“I can’t believe we're getting another transfer,” Jace groans. The teachers are all gathered in the lounge, waiting for Principal Penhallow to bring in the latest transfer to their high school. Teenagers can be ruthless, especially when they smell fresh blood - this will be their third new music teacher in as many months.
“Jace-” Alec starts, but Jace ignores him with a roll of his eyes.
“They might as well not even give the poor sap an office, they’ll be gone before they can even use it,” Jace continues.
“Jace, you should really-” Isabelle tries, but ends up as easily ignored as Alec.
“Did you go in on the pool? My money’s on three days,” Jace says with a sharp, derisive laugh.
“I’d like to think I’d at least get through the week, then never come back after the weekend,” an unfamiliar voice chimes in from behind Jace. “Where can I go to put my money on five days?”
When Jace turns he sees a guy a few years younger than himself, with dark hair and glasses and a band tee underneath a suit jacket that’s either well worn or second-hand.
Jace knows he should feel bad that the new guy overheard him saying all that, and he knows he should be nicer - or at least apologize for his somewhat insensitive comment.
Jace does neither of those things.
“I think Underhill was running it,” Jace says instead, nodding towards a man off to the right with curly blonde hair.
The new teacher hesitates, then opens his mouth to say something before Mrs. Penhallow walks through the door and immediately motions for him to come over to her. Whatever he was about to say, Jace will never know, because he closes his mouth and walks away from Jace without another word.
“You can be such an ass,” Izzy sighs, shaking her head.
Jace shrugs. “It won’t matter in a week anyway,” he repeats.
“Would it kill you to be nice for a week?” Alec counters.
“Oh, that’s rich coming from you,” Jace starts but is cut off by Mrs. Penhallow very dramatically clearing her throat from the front of the room.
“Everyone, if I can have your attention, please,” she says, though it’s obvious from the tone of her voice that the words are clearly not a request. “This is Simon Lewis, and he’s going to be the new music teacher for the remainder of the school year. Let’s do our best to welcome him in and give him any assistance he may need adjusting to Alicante High.”
The new teacher - Simon - manages a self-conscious half-smile. “I’ll do my best not to be too needy,” he says with a nervous laugh, which is met with a few chuckles from the rest of the staff. Jace feels a little bad - Simon seems like a decent guy, which is just another reason not to get too attached, he reminds himself.
The last thing he needs is to actually start liking the guy before he leaves like all the others.
---
“Hey! Mister… blondie!” Jace hears the voice behind him and stops, turning to see none other than Mr. Lewis rushing to catch up with him. “Sorry, I didn’t actually get your name yesterday.”
“It’s Jace,” Jace offers, obviously not thrilled about being addressed as ‘blondie’.
“Jace. Great. Hey, Jace. I need help,” Simon says.
Jace grimaces. Already? Day one and the poor guy can’t handle his-
“Any chance you know some local music stores I can swing by? This place is like… really underfunded. I have a few things I want to pick up, and I heard you play guitar so I figured you might know a place.” Simon says the last bit with a slight smirk, and Jace doesn’t have to wonder who gave him that particular bit of information, making a mental note to yell at Izzy later.
But mostly Jace is surprised that Simon’s so quick to dump personal funds into this position. Most of the others were trying to figure a way out by day one, not investing money into the place.
“Yeah, I know a place. What are you looking for?”
Simon shrugs. “Odds and ends. A few replacement strings for a few kids who can’t afford to buy them from the school, maybe some sheet music that’ll actually, you know, interest them.”
Huh. Maybe Jace didn’t give Simon enough credit at first. Jace digs into his messenger bag for some scrap paper and jots down a phone number, name, and address. “Here. If they don’t have what you’re looking for they’ll probably know who does.”
Simon takes the piece of paper and grins. “Thanks. I really appreciate it, man.”
“Sure thing,” Jace says, watching Simon turn and practically run back off in the other direction towards the music wing.
---
“What is that godforsaken noise?!’ Jace asks Alec, scrunching his entire face up in displeasure at the sound coming from the music wing.
It’s only been three days, but that wouldn’t be the fastest the students managed to overpower their music instructor by creating chaos during class.
“Looks like we may need to go rescue Mr. Lewis,” Alec sighs.
“You’re just mad he lasted this long - you only had two days in the pool,” Jace points out.
“Shut up,” Alec mutters as they approach the door to the music room and look in through the window to see…
Well, for a few seconds Jace doesn’t know what they’re seeing. The children are all seated, and there’s no mutiny to be seen. In fact, Simon stands at the front of the room and seems to be intentionally encouraging the horrible noise coming from the kids in the seats.
That’s when Jace notices what the kids have in their mouths - kazoos. One of the kids shouts “A, B, C, D, E, F you-” at the start before falling in with the kazoo like the others, causing several of the students around her to giggle into their plastic instruments.
“Well, that explains the noise,” Jace mutters. “This is awful, Alec.”
“Yeah, but look at them-” Alec says, motioning back to the window. Jace turns his gaze back to the classroom to see the students end the “song” - a term Jace uses liberally here - and fall silent, attention fully on Simon as he explains what they’re going to do next.
“I can’t believe they fell for that,” Jace says, but there’s an unexpected fondness in his tone, with just a hint of how impressed he is at the sight.
“Looks like they might not be the only ones,” Alec whispers with a wink.
Jace sputters, backing away from the door quickly. “No! Not a chance.”
“Uh-huh,” is all Alec says before heading back down the hallway the way they came. To Alec’s credit, he doesn’t say anything when Jace hangs behind to watch Simon teach through the window a little while longer.
---
“You can just sit in next time, you know,” Simon says, sidling up beside Jace in the teacher’s lounge later that day.
“What?” Jace asks even though they both know this can only be about one thing.
“I saw you at the door today. I’d love more feedback at this point, honestly, so just pop in next time! Maybe you can even pick our next song!” Simon adds enthusiastically, and not at all like he’s annoyed with Jace spying on his class uninvited.
“I didn’t even know your first song,” Jace points out.
“Come back tomorrow so I can have a witness I haven’t fled in terror yet! Also, they’ll be playing it on instruments this time around. I can’t promise it’ll sound any better, though.”
“I can’t possibly sound any worse,” Jace points out, but immediately regrets the comment when Simon’s smile drops almost immediately. He covers quickly, adding, “But I might have enough time before 8th period to stop in, I’ll see what I can do.”
“Great,” Simon says, covering any disappointment with a new smile. “Well, I better run. Have to get to that music store you told me about and grab some sheet music I had them order in. Later, Jace!”
Jace doesn’t get it. He’s been nothing but a dick since Simon showed up, but Simon is still going out of his way to be nice to him. None of the teachers go out of their way to be nice to Jace, not even his own siblings.
He also isn’t sure why he can’t just bring himself to humor Simon’s relentless positivity, because Alec is right - he is falling for it, just a little.
Not that it’ll matter if he pushed Simon away completely first.
Tomorrow. He’ll swing by tomorrow and he’ll make a better impression.
---
Tomorrow rolls around and Jace shows up during Simon’s 7th-period class again, but this time he knocks on the window to get Simon’s attention and an invitation in.
“Ah, it looks like Mr. Herondale is going to join us today,” Simons says from the front of the class. One of the students nearest to Jace shifts over a chair and pats the now-empty one for him to sit.
Jace eyes Simon warily. “Join?”
“I saved you a kazoo,” Simon says with a smirk.
Jace is about to refuse, to stand up and walk out rather than look ridiculous in front of the students he has to teach, too… but he sees that smile on Simon’s face and finds that he doesn’t want to be the cause of it vanishing for the third time in a week.
“You’ll have to pick a song I know, then,” Jace says, finally.
“We already did,” Simon states proudly, handing around the sheet music to “Enter Sandman” by Metallica. “A little birdie told me you usually use Metallica as background music in class.”
Jace stares around the room to see who the guilty student is who ratted him out but everyone avoids eye contact, focusing very intently on their sheet music instead.
“Alright, we’re going to sightread this one, but I get the feeling a lot of you should have the basic idea of it already. I know it’s old, but-”
“It’s classic,” Jace interrupts, and some of the students laugh again.
“Right, classic,” Simon corrects with a wink at the laughing students. “Alright, everyone ready?”
Jace brings the kazoo up to his lips, and despite only making noise grudgingly the first few bars, actually gets into the song after a little while. He also manages to avoid the impulse to plug his ears as the teenagers hum their way through the opening sections of the song before Simon cuts them off.
“Great! We’ll work on it a little more in-depth next week with our normal instruments. Remember, we’ll be voting next Friday on the songs we’ll be focusing on for the End of Semester Showcase, so if you like these older classics, remember to vote for them!”
The class files out but Jace stays behind to chat with Simon, even though he knows it’ll make him a little late for his own, which starts in about 6 minutes.
“Please tell me there’s a reason you’re letting them butcher all these songs,” Jace asks, waving his kazoo in the air for emphasis. He wanted to ask before but wasn’t about to question Simon’s teaching in front of the students.
“They get a feel for the melody without having to fumble over technique,” Simon explains. “And it’s fun. I’m sure you haven’t entirely abandoned fun in your life, have you, Mr. Herondale?”
Jace scrunches his nose, and isn’t sure what feels so off about Simon saying his name until he realizes it’s because Simon didn’t call him ‘Jace’ this time. Probably just because students are still milling around, but even so…
“I know how to have fun,” Jace insists. “I did the kazoo thing, didn’t I?”
Simon laughs. “You did,” he agrees. “But I was thinking more… outside of work. I am new to the area, after all…” Simon starts, obviously leading.
“Looking for someone to show you around the city?” Jace finishes for him.
“At least a good restaurant, to start,” Simon suggests hopefully.
Jace is, quite honestly, at a total loss here. He can’t get a read on Simon at all, certainly not enough of one to know if Simon is just being friendly, or naive, or if this is what Jace thinks he’s reading into it. Because it sounds a lot like Simon is fishing to set up a date, but maybe that’s just because that’s what Jace wants him to be doing.
There’s a reason why Jace came back today, after all. And he wouldn’t sit here and hum on a kazoo in front of a bunch of teenagers for just anybody, not that Simon knows that.
Simon must see the confusion written all over Jace’s face because he takes a deep breath and steels himself before speaking again.
“Maybe… as a date?” Simon continues, still hopefully, but this time with a bit more anxiousness. “You don’t have to. Or it could just be as friends… or I could never talk to you again if I totally overstepped and-”
“I think I know a few places,” Jace cuts Simon off before he can talk himself out of the idea. “Tomorrow night?”
“Great. Yeah, tomorrow night,” Simon agrees. “It’s a date.” Simon pauses again. “It… is a date, right? I realize I gave options.”
“Yes, Simon. It’s a date,” Jace confirms, rolling his eyes but smiling at the same time as he leaves to make it to his own class, hopefully not too late.
Normally, Jace wouldn’t have given someone like Simon a shot - too much energy, too much pep - but there’s something about Simon that makes Jace want to see. He has a feeling that Simon might surprise him beyond his ability to survive a week as the school’s new music teacher, and he can’t wait to find out how.
“All units be advised, a warlock has been kidnapped in front of his home. Looking for three males and an SUV license plate Echo Delta Three Seven Golf Kilo Zero.”
“Was it Magnus Bane?”
“...”
“It was Magnus Bane.”
“Not again.”
This was created for the Shadowhunter Bingo. Hosted by the @thehuntersmoondiscord
And also a very late birthday gift for @vaguelyrotten
Prompts used: Cursed and Hurt/Comfort
Alec shakes out his hand as he drops the unconscious man to the ground. He looks around the room, still on high alert for any other goons still hiding and waiting for an opportunity to attack. When he doesn’t hear anyone, he lets his guard down.
“My, my Shade, thank you for saving me,” Magnus croons. The warlock is still tied up in the chair, which doesn’t have magic restraining cuffs on it. Alec couldn’t help but snort when he noticed that upon entering the room to rescue the warlock.
“This is the second time this month, Mr. Bane,” Alec sighs.
“Is it?” Magnus questions. He rubs his hands where the cuffs were on his wrists. Alec doesn’t know why he would do that as they weren’t on that tight. “It seems like it's been weeks since my last kidnapping.”
“That’s because your perception of time is wrong,” Alec points out. He leaves Magnus to collect himself and starts collecting any salvageable arrows he can. It’s not like money grows on trees for a vigilante like him.
“Well, when you have a schedule like mine, time seems to fly.”
Magnus stretches his arms above his head. Who knows how long Magnus sat there before he arrived? He feels slightly guilty about not coming right away but there was a mugging and he can’t just ignore one crime for the other.
Besides, he doubts that Magnus even cares when he’s kidnapped at this point. Alec has never met a man more kidnapped in his life. Alec is pretty sure one year the warlock was kidnapped ten times and each time Magnus came out mostly unscathed.
Alec pulls the last arrow out of the wall. He looks at the unconscious goons on the ground and snorts. He swears these idiots are getting dumber and dumber as the years go on. It’s been almost a decade to the day that he decided to pick up the name Shade and began to protect the people of this city from people who would prefer to watch it crumble.
Alec isn’t denying that there’s a lot of corruption in Edom, but going after the one man who’s in a high position of power and trying to change the system is not the way to go about it.
Alec was wary of Magnus at first. It was clear the man had high standards and made people pay insane prices for his work. It wasn’t until later when Alec was scoping out the warlock that he realized Magnus only made wealthy people pay insane prices while those less fortunate barely had to pay a dime.
There are so many layers to Magnus Bane that Alec has yet to uncover.
“Well now that you’ve saved me from these mean old goons,” Magnus saunters his way over to him like a cat about to catch his prey, “How about we celebrate this victory with lunch?”
“Mr. Bane,” Alec sighs, walking around Magnus to the exit. “How many times do I have to tell you that I am on the clock?”
“And how many times are you going to avoid giving me an answer?” Magnus jabs back. “You have never said yes or no.”
“Maybe there’s a reason for that. You’re a smart man, Mr. Bane. I’m sure you’ll figure it out eventually.” Alec would never talk to anyone he’s rescued like this, but he and Magnus have a weird bond at this point.
Magnus catches up to him when he realizes that Alec is not going to wait for him. He walks right next to Alec, close enough that their hands occasionally brush against each other. Alec has to resist shoving his hands in his pocket. He can’t let the man know how much it affects him. It would all go to Magnus’ head and Alec would never hear the end of it.
“Do you talk to all the people you rescue like that, Shade?”
“Just you,” Alec replies, holding the door open for Magnus.
Alec sends a message to the commissioner about the knocked out people in the building and to send a patrol car to pick them up. Alec smirks at his phone as Raphael complains but agrees to send a car there. Raphael then sends him a message about a robbery that took place and asks for his help tracking the people down.
“See, you can smile,” Magnus jokes, pointing a finger at his mouth. “You know if you keep avoiding all my questions to get to know you, I’m going to start stalking you.”
“Whatever you say, gorgeous,” Alec says, grappling to the roof of a building. He’s pretty sure Magnus says something but he’s focused on the next crime. These assholes really don’t know when to quit.
It’s not until he’s already a few blocks away that he realizes what he said.
---
The next time Magnus and Shade cross paths is not the best encounter. He’s not even Shade, he’s just Alec. Just a regular person who happens to slowly be disappearing as the days go by. He doesn’t know what happened. He can’t think of when Shade was hit with magic. All of his recent vigilante endeavors have been mild; barely any magic used.
The only reason it was even spotted was that Izzy wanted to help him find a suit for the Commissioner’s reelection gala. Raphael doesn’t know that he's Shade, but he does know Alec runs a charity organization, Merlin’s Sanctuary, to help less fortunate warlocks. While magic is seen as high class by most of society, those without it hate anyone who comes into the power, even their own family.
Alec created the foundation during his early days of being Shade, when most of the “criminals” he went after were just kids kicked out by their parents when they came into their magic. Alec didn’t have the heart to tie them up and give them to the police— though he did take back what was stolen. After too many instances, he had enough of it and created the foundation. It was met with quite the backlash.
Since he wasn't a warlock, people saw him as a suck up and a traitor. Little did the people of Edom know, the crime rates diminished at a pretty hefty rate after. Kids now had a place to stay where they could learn and grow into their magic without having to fend for themselves. Alec has an amazing staff full of warlocks and regular people who want nothing more than to help the next generation.
It doesn’t surprise him that eventually someone would go after Alec to put an end to his charity work.
When Izzy let out a shocked gasp as he was putting on a disgustingly bright button up and rushed to his side, he had no idea what was going on. It wasn’t until she held his hand up to the light that he saw his hand was faded. She wanted to call someone to help, but Alec couldn’t miss the gala— not when it was important not only to his charity but to Shade as well.
These galas always bring in the sleazy type of people who want to rub shoulders with Raphael to get away with their own crimes. Of course, none of them know how by the book Raphael is and it’s always a treat to see the shock on those rich bastards' faces when Raphael shuts them down.
Izzy wasn’t happy, but he promised her that he would keep an eye on it and wear gloves for the night and stay away from people— or should he say, he attempted to stay away from people.
Even as Alec Lightwood, he finds his attention taken by Magnus Bane. The man is dressed to the nines like always, never one to be upstaged by others. He steals the attention of any room he’s in— or maybe that's just Alec.
Izzy digs an elbow into his side as she catches him staring at Magnus more than normal.
“I thought you were annoyed by him,” Izzy teases.
“I am,” Alec defends. Izzy gives him a look and he rolls his eyes. “Or Shade is, whatever. Look, Magnus is a thorn in Shade’s side. Me,” Alec glances back at Magnus, “I can appreciate a nice looking guy.”
“So tell him,” Izzy says.
“Absolutely not! I am nowhere near his league,” Alec scoffs. “In case you didn’t notice he’s wearing a four hundred dollar shirt from Versace.”
“How do you even know that?”
“I had to listen to him complain about it when I accidentally got blood on his other one, saving his life.”
Izzy cackles at the story. “Yeah that sounds like something he would do.”
Izzy and Alec continue to watch Magnus as he approaches other guests at the gala. The man seems to get along with everyone. Kind smiles, warm handshakes, flirtatious looks; if Alec didn’t know the real Magnus, he would assume that Magnus was a playboy. Alec snorts when Magnus gives Raphael a big hug, much to the Commissioner’s chagrin.
Magnus has been the number one donor into Raphael’s reelection. Raphael and Magnus grew up together and have been friends since they were children. The only reason Alec knows this is because Magnus occasionally gets kidnapped to be used as leverage against Raphael.
Raphael knows that Shade won’t let anything happen to Magnus and has been dismissive with the criminals who commit the crime. It makes Alec’s life as Shade a bit harder because the goons are angrier by the time he shows up and it takes longer to take them down.
He’s so distracted by the interaction that he almost doesn’t catch someone approaching him. Alec turns and realizes it’s Camille Belcourt. Alec has to stop himself from rolling his eyes as she comes his way. He would rather suffer the presence of Lorenzo Rey than spend a single second in hers.
The definition of a spoiled brat who hates when she doesn’t get her way, she’s been trying to get him to let her have a share of his charity for weeks now. Alec has refused her and her gifts every time. He knows that her family is anti-magic and has been secretly donating to organizations looking to rid Edom of everything magic-related. The only reason she wants a share of his organization is to shut it down.
Good thing Shade has been collecting evidence of their crimes over the years and is just waiting to have enough to go to the commissioner about it.
“Mr. Lightwood,” Camille greets. “I was wondering where you were. I have been looking for you all night and here you are just hiding in a corner.”
“I’m sure you were, Miss Belcourt,” Alec muses. “I assume you were looking for me to talk business, and once again I am going to have to decline your generous offer.”
He watches her hand twitch against the champagne flute and her smirk fade for a split second. She is frustrated that he didn’t let her try and butter him up like she has every other time. Izzy hides a laugh behind her hand.
“You really are a hard man to please, Alexander.” She steps into his personal space and runs a hand down his chest. Alec feels a disgusting shiver run down his spine. Her perfume invades his nostrils and he has to choke back a gag. “There has to be something I can do to make you hear me out.”
“You can start by stepping back,” a voice chimes in. Magnus Bane is suddenly standing next to Alec, grabbing Camille’s hand off his chest. Raphael is also on his way over, anger on his face as well. “For someone who touts themself as clever, you are still as dense as ever.”
“Magnus,” she purrs. “Come to save the day? Mr. Lightwood and I were just talking about his charity organization.”
“And that requires you to put your hands on him?” Raphael asks. “Not a very smart move to do in a gala full of cops, Camille.”
Clearly cornered, Camille walks away in a huff. Alec lets out a tired sigh and pinches the bridge of his nose. He wishes he could get a restraining order against her, but she legally hasn’t done anything wrong.
“Good riddance,” Izzy grumbles beside Alec. She’s practically leaning into his side. If it weren't for the hand Alec put on her wrist, he’s pretty sure she would have fought the woman. Not that he’s worried about her. She’s been his sparring partner for as long as he can remember. Izzy may look small but she can get a man his size flipped over her shoulder and pinned on the ground in under a minute.
“What a psychotic woman,” Raphael comments. “Are you alright, Alec?”
“I’m fine, just annoyed. Camille doesn’t seem to want to back down from taking my charity away from me.”
“What does a snake like her even want with the charity? It’s not like she cares about it,” Raphael says. “If anything she would want to burn that place to the ground so that she can have her father build a condo or something.”
“I don’t know, but this is the fifth time she’s propositioned me,” Alec sighs. “She thinks that because she comes from money, I want hers. I don’t, and to be honest I would love to not interact with her ever again.”
“You want me to turn her into an actual snake?” Magnus jokes. The man saunters up to Alec and holds out a hand. “Magnus Bane. I don’t think we’ve been formally introduced. Raphael has told me about your charity organization.”
Alec takes the hand. “Alec Lightwood. It’s nice to finally meet the face behind my biggest donor this year, I really appreciate it.”
“Oh the pleasure was all mine,” Magnus says. “When Raphael told me about it, I wondered how I never heard of it before. I knew I had to donate to such an amazing cause. A lot of us older warlocks could have used that kind of place when we were younger.”
“I’m sorry there wasn’t something already in place,” Alec sympathizes. “Those kids only ever wanted a place to call home and I hope that I am providing that for them.”
“Well, I can already tell those kids are going to have some amazing young years with you at the helm,” Magnus declares. “You truly are one of a kind, Alexander.”
“Alec,” he corrects with a faint blush on his cheeks. “Only my parents use my full name.”
“But it rolls off the tongue so well,” Magnus flirts.
“It’s like we’re not even here,” Izzy sighs off to the side. Alec breaks eye contact with Magnus and looks at Izzy, who has the most smug grin on her face. Alec already is dreading the conversation they are going to have when they leave.
“I am used to this,” Raphael agrees. “You should see Magnus in an art gallery. It’s like I’m a ghost.”
“That is not true,” Magnus denies. “I just know you don’t know anything about the pieces and wish to impart some knowledge on you that isn’t narcotics or whatever it is you do as commissioner.”
“I really need to stop inviting you to these events if you’re not even going to know what it is I do as a commissioner,” Raphael states before turning and walking away. “It was good to see you, Alec and Isabelle.”
“Wait no, I’m sorry Raphael,” Magnus calls out. He gets three steps in the direction Raphael went before turning around to Alec. “It was a pleasure to meet the both of you. If you’re around for the whole night I’d love to talk about the charity again with you— wait, Raphael, stop moving so fast!”
Alec watches Magnus weave his way through the crowd with apologies as he tries to catch up to his friend. He can’t stop the smile on his face. Magnus definitely lived up to his name and Alec was happy to finally meet him. Izzy once again jabs an elbow into his side and he can’t even be mad.
“Yeah, yeah you were right,” Alec admits. “You’re the best sister.”
“Just as long as you know,” Izzy laughs.
“Can you survive on your own for a bit? I need to go to the restroom and check to see if my hand got worse.”
“I think I can fend on my own for a bit. I think I see Clary and Jace anyway so I’ll be over with them. You better let me know because we are heading home if it is.”
Alec gives her a quick hug and a thank you and heads off to find the bathroom. His hand still feels warm from when it held Magnus’. He tries to shake the feeling off, but there’s something about Magnus that over the years has captured Alec’s attention. The way he flirts with Shade and tries to get to know even a little sliver of information about him, about Alec.
He knows it would be the worst decision to pursue Magnus while also being Shade. That would only end in disaster, especially if he still kept his identity as Shade a secret. Everything about the thought of dating Magnus has alarms going off in his head.
He pushes to the door to the restroom open and lets out a relieved sigh that no one is inside. He leans against the sink and looks at himself in the mirror, looking for any sign for change. Whatever is happening to him is only in his hands for now. He removes his gloves and inspects his hands. He lets out a curse as it clearly has gotten worse. The shine from the porcelain sink reflects through his hands.
He has no idea why this is happening. He’s so careful as Shade now because of close calls with magic in the past. Izzy even helped him with his suit so that it deflects most magical spells. After he fell into a coma for a week from a teenager just trying to protect themselves, Izzy had made him promise to be more careful.
“Oh my god.”
Alec jumps at the voice, trying to quickly put his gloves back on, but he's halted when a ringed hand takes his. Alec looks up to see Magnus with a worried look on his face as Magnus flips his hand back and forth, inspecting it.
“What happened?” Magnus demands.
“It’s nothing,” Alec tries to appease, attempting to pull his hand away, but Magnus’ grip holds firm.”I promise. One of the new kids at the organization got scared and used magic on me.”
Magnus looked like he didn’t believe him for a second. “The kind of magic that would cause this would have to come from a powerful spell. I doubt that a child did this. Did Camille do this when she touched you? I swear I will go find her and turn her into a toad.”
“No Magnus, I promise it wasn’t Camille,” he reassures Magnus. He can’t have Magnus making a scene in front of a bunch of police. “Izzy and I spotted it this evening when getting ready for the event. We don’t know what started it.”
“Okay, do you mind if I try some magic on it and see if I can detect anything?” Magnus asks.
“Go for it.”
The blue magic that covers his hand is cool to the touch. It sends a different type of shiver down his spine. Alec watches with fascination as tendrils crawl up and down his wrist. He's always found magic wonderful; ever since he was a kid and his babysitter would use magic to help care for him and his siblings.
Magnus lets out a curse and stops his magic. “Well, I have good news and bad news.”
“Give me the bad news first,” Alec says.
“I can’t fix this.” At the look of dread Alec gives him, Magnus quickly reassures him. “Right now — but it is curable. I can’t do it with just magic. It seems you’ve been cursed, Alexander.”
“Cursed?” Alec stutters.
Great, just what he needs in his life.
---
“Why is Magnus Bane in our house?”
Izzy stands frozen in the entryway with bags of groceries in her hands. She’s looking over at the eccentric man who is currently surrounded by close to twenty open books on their loveseat.
“He invited himself over,” Alec groans from the couch.
“Well is he staying for dinner?”
“Probably. He’s been in that chair reading while simultaneously poking and prodding my body with magic.” Alec rubs a hand on his stomach. “I’m pretty sure his last attempt rearranged my organs.”
“That sounds like something he would do.”
“I am right here, you two,” Magnus chastises, finally looking up from his book to glare at the siblings. He’s wearing a pair of glasses that have had Alec thinking of his grandma naked. “And to answer your question: I am here because it’s easier to try and break the spell if I have the cursed person in the same room as me. Alexander refused to come to my house.”
“Your house is like ten miles away from my work. I’m not about to make that journey every day,” Alec argues. “Besides, you can make portals to your house if needed.”
Magnus scoffs at his words. “Just because I can doesn’t mean I have to.”
“So how’s the research going?” Izzy asks as she puts away groceries. “Any closer to finding out what’s happening to my brother?”
“Sadly no,” Magnus sighs, removing his glasses and massaging his temples. “Since Alexander doesn’t know when or how he was cursed, it’s making it incredibly difficult to find the right counterspell. All I know is that the curse relies on touch, but that could mean a plethora of things.”
“Apologies, I didn’t realize that people would be so passionate about wanting me gone,” he deadpans. Izzy comes over to the couch and pushes Alec’s legs off the other end to sit down. He sends a light kick to her leg before sitting up.
“So what does that mean?” Izzy worries. “The curse has gone up most of his arms now. I assume it will spread to the rest of his body if we don’t stop it.”
“It means that if I don’t figure out what this curse is by the end of the month, Alexander will disappear for good,” Magnus states.
That gets both Alec and Izzy to freeze. She looks over at him with the same fear he never wanted to see again. Ever since that battle with Valentine all those years ago, Izzy has been like a hawk every night he comes home. She wants to check over even the slightest injury. He occasionally gets annoyed, but he lets her do it every time, no matter how tired he is.
“But you can stop this right?” She asks.
“Yes,” Magnus assured. “I promise I will find a cure.”
“And I guess I will start dinner,” Alec says, getting up from the couch.
Izzy tries to grab his wrist before he gets up but he’s quick to avoid contact. He can feel both sets of eyes on his back as he starts opening cabinets and pulling out what he needs to cook. He needs to be alone to process that information. Knowing Izzy, she’ll want to help Magnus in any way possible and ask a million questions.
It’s barely a week into the month, which means he potentially has less than three weeks to live if Magnus can’t get rid of the curse. His mind races with all the things he has yet to accomplish, not only with his charity but with Shade. There’s so much corruption in the city that still needs to be brought to light.
His work against the Belcourt Family will be all for naught if he can’t finish his current investigation. Young warlocks have been disappearing from the city in the past few years, only to turn up dead whenever they were found. He knows the Belcourts are involved, he just needs more evidence.
He lets out a hiss as he accidentally slices his finger.
“Careful,” Magnus scolds, suddenly appearing at his side. Magnus takes the injured hand in his and sends a gentle stream of magic to heal it. Alec glances over at Izzy who seems to be very invested in the TV.
“You know I have bandaids,” Alec says, inspecting his hand for a wound.
“Why deal with pain when you have a magical solution right here?” Magnus lets sparks shoot from his fingertips as he wiggles them. Alec lets out a quiet laugh at the display and goes back to cutting vegetables.
“You’re already going above and beyond to help me with my problem,” Alec reminds him. “And I’m sure your magic can be saved for more important matters.”
“Are you saying you’re not important?” Magnus leans against the counter and crosses his arms.
“I just don’t think your magic is needed for a paper cut,” Alec says. He focuses on the task at hand and not on the magical man next to him.
“I was hired to help cure you. Pretty sure that means paper cuts and all,” Magnus teases.
“Oh yeah?” Alec looks over with a smirk. “And whose money will you be taking, mine or Izzy’s?”
“I was thinking of making this a charity case.” Magnus leans closer. “Since you’ve done so much for my people. It’s the least I can do.”
“That so?”
“I’m thinking of calling it Bane of Your Existence,” Magnus jokes before turning serious. “I know you think your life doesn’t matter in the long run, but it took you starting your organization for people to realize that just because a person has the ability to use magic, doesn’t mean they are well off or are loved by everyone. We older folk really appreciate all you’ve done.” Magnus lays his hand against Alec’s still one on the cutting board. “It would be awful of me to not help knowing that I can.”
Alec feels his throat dry up at Magnus’ honesty. He knew his charity helped a lot of kids but he didn’t realize how big of an impact it was on the older generations.
“Thank you, Magnus,” Alec whispers.
Magnus gives him a smile, squeezes his hand, and leaves the kitchen. Alec watches him take his seat in the living room, put his glasses back on, and get back to looking through his books. He shamelessly admits he stares at Magnus a bit longer than he intends to. For a man who is supposedly the toughest magic-user to hire, he sure seems to happily give his free time to those who need it.
He chances a glance at his sister. Izzy is giving him the biggest smirk he thinks he’s ever seen on her. She doesn’t say a word and goes back to watching the TV. He silently prepares himself for the late night talk they are going to have. He hopes she got the good wine when she went to the store earlier. No five dollar box of wine is going to make him spill his guts to her.
---
Two weeks go by and with no progress.
Whack.
Alec is starting to lose hope on there being a cure for this curse.
Whack.
The curse has begun to spread across his torso. It is terrifying seeing himself in the mirror after a shower and seeing through himself.
Whack.
He should just tell Magnus to give up.
Whack.
The kind man is starting to lose sleep over trying to help Alec out.
Whack.
But Alec wouldn’t be able to look Magnus in the eyes if he said he has given up.
Whack. Whack.
Alec releases the last arrow into the foam target and sighs.
Magnus has been working around the clock to find an answer. He’s started sleeping at Alec’s house— or should he say passing out. There’s only so many times that Alec can come home from his vigilante work and find Magnus asleep on the couch surrounded by books. Alec does what he can to make the man comfortable; has even offered his bed to Magnus but the man refuses, stating that he has to buy Alec a drink first before getting into bed with him.
Magnus doesn’t see what Alec sees: the circles under his eyes from long nights scouring a book, and spending more time here than at his own house. Alec has asked if he had anyone wondering where he was, and Magnus had said that he magics Chairman his food every morning. Alec wanted to ask what that meant, but Magnus was on his fourth cup of coffee and he was afraid of the answer.
He walks over to the targets and collects the arrows. There’s only so much he can do about the situation, and making Magnus’ life harder is the last thing he needs.
He looks over at his vigilante suit. It’s been a couple of days since he went out. There hasn’t been as much crime in the city since Raphael has implemented more patrols with the big city celebration coming up. It’s the one time of the year that Alec actually gets a break and some sleep. He wished that this stupid curse wasn’t happening so he could actually enjoy his time.
It probably also helps that Magnus is currently at his place 24/7. Alec lets out a snort. The man can’t be kidnapped if he doesn’t go out all the time anymore.
Deciding to give in, Alec puts on the suit and heads out for the night. He sends a text to Magnus that he’s going to be working late tonight at the charity center and that he is free to eat whatever food is in the fridge. Magnus sends him a plethora of emojis and he turns off his phone. He takes the fire escape to the roof and uses his grapple to move across the skyline.
He's forgotten how peaceful Edom is at night. Even with the crimes he’s intervened in, it doesn’t stop him from loving the city that raised him into who he is now. He would have never put on the persona of Shade if he thought the city was perfect. After what happened to Max, Alec swore to protect this city and its people from the same fate. And if he can get Belcourt arrested, he knows he did his brother justice.
He hears a scream a few blocks away and changes his trajectory. The wind screams in his ears as he goes as fast as he can through the buildings. He can already feel his adrenaline pumping through his veins at the thought of stopping a crime from occurring. He really shouldn’t have taken that break, even with the increased police patrols in the city. He grapples the edge of a building and swings into the alley the scream emanated from. He quietly lands on a fire escape and looks at the scene below, taking out his bow.
Below him, it seems like a simple robbery: a citizen caught on their way home from a closing shift got cornered by a goon looking to make a quick buck. The guy looks like he only has a knife on him and isn’t threatening the other man’s life. The knife is pointed at the man but is not pressed against his throat.
“Just give me your damn wallet!” The mugger demands.
“I can’t! I need that money for my child, please you have to understand,” the other tries to bargain.
“You think I care about your whiny little brat?” He scoffs and steps close. “Fork it over.”
The citizen shakes his head and presses closer to the wall. Alec commends the man for doubling down for the sake of his family, but judging by the mugger's change in demeanor, things are about to get worse.
“Guess we have to do this the hard way.”
“Not on my watch,” Alec announces, then fires an arrow at the hand holding the knife— not to injure the hand, but to graze it enough to get the mugger to drop the knife.
As the weapon clatters to the ground, he drops down and kicks the mugger into the opposite wall. He turns to the citizen who’s staring at him, wide-eyed and frozen.
“You should get home now,” he informs the man.
“Right. Thank you, Shade.” The man books it out of the alley and probably runs all the way home.
“You asshole!” The mugger growls behind him. Alec prepares himself to go on the defense as he turns, only to catch a glimpse of a familiar blue magic shoot out at the mugger and launch him into the wall again. The man falls to the ground, knocked out cold.
He turns to the entrance of the alley and sees someone who also should not be out this late at night. He feels his heart rate spike— whether that’s from fear or from excitement, he’ll never know.
“Magnus,” Alec sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Why are you here?”
“You called me gorgeous,” Magnus simply replies, casually strolling up next to him. Alec lets out a scoff at the man’s answer. “I haven’t seen you in a while and when I heard the scream I had to help out. I saw you zip into the alley and just had to visit you.”
“You could have been hurt!” he chastises. “I was chasing after a dangerous criminal!”
“Please Shade,” Magnus snorts. “Give me more credit than that. I may not flaunt my magic like some of the other warlocks in this city, but I do know how to defend and protect myself.”
“That so?” Alec asks, crossing his arms. “Then pray tell, why the last few times you’ve been kidnapped you haven’t saved yourself? I know you notice that the restraints aren’t magic resistant.”
Magnus purses his lips at being caught. Clearly, he didn’t think that Shade would notice as if he’s not perceptive of everything around him at all times— it comes with his line of work. Can’t be caught off guard if he’s always on guard.
Alec doesn't say anything as he watches Magnus try to come up with a good excuse. He’s already fiddling with his ear cuff, which means whatever is about to come out of his mouth will absolutely be a lie— not that Alec minds. Magnus likes to play coy with Shade at times.
Before Magnus can reply, it seems that the mugger isn’t as knocked out as he thought. He sees the man start to charge at Magnus. The man’s hands are glowing, which strikes Alec as odd that he didn’t use magic to mug the other man earlier. He quickly pushes Magnus out of the way and lets the man grab his hands. He lets out a hiss as magic burns through his gloves.
Not letting the man get the upper ground, he grits through the pain and headbutts the man. He ducks and turns to bring the mugger over his shoulder and slams him on the pavement. The man lets out a painful groan and Alec gives him a swift punch to the face.
He curses under his breath at the unconscious asshole. He rips off the destroyed gloves to get a better look at his hands. Seems the fire wasn’t strong enough to get through the fabric but still ruined the outer layer. He’ll have to ask Izzy to make him a new pair.
A gasp to his left takes him out of his inspection.
“It can’t be you.”
He looks over at Magnus and sees a look of shock and recognition on his face. He touches his face to feel that his mask and hood are still on. Then how did… Alec realizes as he touches his mask that his gloves are off. His faded hand is in full view of Magnus. There’s only one person whom Magnus is dealing with that has this same predicament. It wouldn’t be hard for him to put one and two together.
“Magnus,” Alec says slowly. “I can explain.”
“You—” Magnus stammers. “You’re—”
“Not here,” Alec rushes out, realizing they are still in public, even if it’s just an alley. “I’ll explain everything just, not here.”
Magnus looks like he wants to say more but nods his head.
“I’ll go wait at the alley entrance,” Magnus informs, tone different from mere seconds ago. “Finish up whatever you need to do here.”
“Magnus,” Alec starts but Magnus already turned around.
He gives a quiet curse and starts to cuff the mugger. He sends a message to the closest police car that he’s left the guy in the alley. Once he hears back from the squad car, he rushes after Magnus.
Everything about Magnus’ stance screams to leave him alone. As soon as he stands next to the warlock, Magnus opens a portal and steps inside. He’s in deep shit now. Magnus has never been this cold with him, even when they first met. He takes a deep breath and steps through the portal ready to take on whatever Magnus throws at him.
As the familiar surroundings of his home come into view, his eyes immediately go to Magnus. The man still hasn’t turned around to him and instead walks towards the couch that he has made his research station.
Alec starts to worry that Magnus is going to pack up and leave him to his own devices. He wouldn’t blame the man for doing so. He kept a pretty big secret from him these past few weeks.
The more this silence goes on the more anxious Alec gets. He doesn’t want to ask Magnus if he’s okay and let the man have time to gather his thoughts.
All that goes out the window when he ducks a book suddenly flung at his head. He watches it hit the wall behind him and turns to Magnus, shocked. Magnus looks furious, and before Alec can apologize, another book is thrown his way.
“Magnus!” Alec yells as he dodges.
“Two weeks!” Magnus shouts at him as he chucks book after book. “Two weeks I have been working to find you a cure and not once did you think to mention you were Shade?”
“I didn’t know I was obligated to tell you my secret identity!” Alec argues.
“Yes, you were! Do you know how much this changes my research? How many more possibilities there are?”
“What are you talking about—” Alec catches a book. “Would you stop throwing books at me?!”
“Not until I hit that stupid head of yours!” Magnus goes to grab another book and Alec takes the opportunity to move.
As Magnus turns around with another book in hand, Alec grabs his wrist. Magnus smacks his arm and demands to be let go. Alec lets out a sigh and brings the book to his head, lightly tapping his temple.
“There, you hit me,” Alec says with a smile. “Can we talk now?”
“You are lucky that I was running out of books,” Magnus huffs and drops the book.
“Thank you, my head appreciates it.”
“I’m sure it does,” Magnus snorts. He waves his hand and all the books return to their original spot before the warlock threw them at him. “Alright then Shade, care to explain?”
Alec winces at the use of his vigilante moniker. This is exactly why he was happy not telling Magnus about his secret. Shade and Magnus have known each other for years. Alec and Magnus have barely known each other for a month.
“Where do you want me to start?” Alec asks, taking a seat on the couch and invites Magnus to do the same. Magnus glares at him before sighing and sitting down next to him.
“How about why you became Shade?”
Alec can already feel his mood change. He had really hoped that Magnus would just ask why he kept this secret from him or why he never said yes to dinner. He pulls out the necklace he hasn’t removed from his neck for almost ten years now.
It’s a small pendant that is nothing to write home about but means everything to him. It’s a sterling silver arrowhead that has a small message engraved on the tip. Umbra, Latin for Shade. Max had said that he chose the word because Alec was so tall that he cast a big shadow. Jace and Izzy had to really hold in their laughter knowing they helped Max get the gift. Alec couldn’t be mad, Max had been only ten years old.
He still remembers the day it was gifted to him like it was yesterday. Max had been so excited to give it to him after he had saved enough of his allowance to afford it. Max had even used his own magic to engrave the words. Max had been practicing for only a few months since he came into his powers and wanted to show Alec how far he had come.
The engraving is an absolute mess, not that he ever told Max. He would take that comment to his grave. He refused to take the necklace off, not even in the shower. He asked a friend to put a protection spell on the pendant so that it never rusted or faded.
“And then he was taken,” Alec rasps out after telling Magnus. “Izzy, Jace and I spent hours scouring Edom trying to find him. We went to every resource we could that would even help us a bit to find him, only to find out the police at the time had taken part in his kidnapping. By the time we were able to track him down, it was too late and I—”
Alec feels a hand take his. He didn’t realize that he squeezed his hand too tight around the pendant that he started bleeding. He can’t bear to look at Magnus’ expression, to see the pity he knows lines the man’s face. He takes a shuddering breath and slowly releases his hand. The pendant is covered in blood that barely lasts a second before Magnus heals the wound.
“You don’t have to say anymore,” Magnus whispers. “I should have known with you being a vigilante that you wouldn’t have started doing it out of the goodness of your heart.”
“It’s alright,” Alec assures with a light laugh. “It’s not a subject I openly talk about. Most people know not to ask about Max anymore when it comes to Merlin’s Sanctuary. Everyone knows the story: kid taken by anti-magic group and murdered in cold blood. At least that’s what the police decided to roll with after they were paid off by the people who actually did it.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’m sure you’re aware that over the past few years, young warlocks have been disappearing from the city only to turn up dead. They don’t happen frequently enough to raise any questions in the public eye but as Shade and from what happened to Max, it became clear that there was an underground anti-magic group targeting kids.”
The amount of children Alec had been too slow to save still haunts him. The bodies he as cradled to his chest as a kid took their last breath is forever seared into his brain.
“Their ideology is that if they get rid of warlocks who are just coming into their powers, they can eradicate all magic users,” Alec snorts. “They don’t realize that warlocks can be born from two non-magical people, like how my brother was. My sister and I don’t have magical powers.”
“But even if the kidnappings are not consistent, Raphael would want to release a statement to the public,” Magnus states. “I’ve known Raphael since we were kids, he wouldn’t possibly keep this under wraps.”
“He would if he knew that it wasn’t his own people helping with the kidnappings,” Alec informs. “Raphael is the best thing to happen to Edom. He’s the only reason that the murders have been less as the years went on. But there’s only so much he can do until he clears out his people of the bad ones. As Shade, I help where I can, which is why he and I stay in close contact and he informs me of any rumors and I tell him the names of the officers I find participating in these heinous crimes.”
“Does he know you’re Shade?” Alec lets out a small laugh at the question.
“I think he has his suspicions,” he answers. “But I think he prefers to not know. Something about knowing my identity would change his feelings towards me and he already has enough people to worry about. His words, not mine.”
“That loveable fool,” Magnus sighs. “It’s not my fault I am so kidnappable.”
“It kinda is,” Alec shrugs. At the glare he receives, he explains further, “I know the last time you got kidnapped, you could have easily escaped.”
“Yeah well,” Magnus trails off, playing with his ear cuff. “It was the only time I got to see you, before you know.” Magnus gestures to Alec’s whole body bringing a blush to his face.
“That’s not healthy,” Alec blurts. “Going after a vigilante because you found him attractive.”
“Yes well, Raphael has always said that I have horrible taste in partners,” Magnus admits as he scoots closer to Alec.
“You’re insane,” Alec deadpans.
“So I have also been told.”
At this point, Magnus is shoulder to shoulder with him on the couch. It’s a comforting weight after recounting the worst moment of his life. He wants to be upset that Magnus knows that he’s Shade, but there’s also an incredible weight lifted off his shoulders that he hadn't known was there.
“Thank you for listening,” he says. “I’m sure finding out that the man you were helping out of the goodness of your heart is the same man that’s been saving your ass for almost a decade can’t be easy.”
“You’re welcome, Alexander, and to be honest, I am surprised at myself as well,” Magnus admits. “I was planning on turning you into a toad for a solid second there.”
---
“So your outfit,” Magnus starts and Alec already is letting out a groan. “Oh hush, you can’t blame me for being curious. You never told me anything about yourself.”
“For a reason, Magnus,” Alec reminds. He lets out a curse as the magic on his chest sends an electric shock to his body. He glares up at the warlock as his hands hover over him.
“Stop moving,” Magnus scolds. “This is a serious spell. And for your information, you are legally bound to tell me everything about Shade.”
“Legally bound?” Alec muses.
“Yes, since you kept it from me for the two weeks that I have known you, I get to ask any questions I want,” Magnus informs.
Alec sighs and sinks further into the couch. He should have known that once Magnus knew he would poke and prod him for any information he could get. Both physically and metaphorically.
“Is the outfit magic resistant?”
“Yes but to an extent,” he answers truthfully. “As you saw last night, that mugger’s magic destroyed my gloves. Usually when I am dealing with a warlock, they keep their distance so I can’t restrain them. But it's easy enough to close the distance and knock them out before they can harm themselves and others. Most of the time though, it’s usually kids who were abandoned by their families after they came into their power. In those situations, I bring them to the Sanctuary and my employees take care of them.”
“So making a profit while protecting the city, shame on you,” Magnus teases.
“Would you rather they go missing and be found murdered days later?” Alec asks.
“Of course not, I was only teasing,” Magnus apologizes.
“Besides, I don't make money from taking the kids in. I just want them to know they’re not alone and that there are people out there who care what happens to them.”
“You’re an honorable man, Alexan— dammit!” Magnus curses and the magic covering his body disappears. Magnus grabs the book on the coffee table and starts to skim-read it. “I thought for sure that would be the one. The book even says right here that those plighted with a curse can use the spell to break it. Do you feel any different?”
Alec raises his hands and inspects the curse. At this point only patches of his skin are visible. His hand is still here, he can pick up things with no problem. Magnus had told him that he wouldn’t disappear until the curse fully took over his body. He said it was a cruel curse as it forced the person to slowly watch themselves fade away bit by bit.
Whoever wanted him gone, wanted it to hurt. He’s given Magnus every name of every criminal he encountered that week, but nothing came up. At this rate, he’s going to be gone by the end of next week. He can only ask for so many days off from Sanctuary. His workers are starting to get worried about him.
“No,” Alec sighs, dropping his arms. “Maybe we should just call it quits—Ow!”
Alec sits up and rubs his forehead from where Magnus smacked up with the spine of the book he’s holding. He glares at the warlock who glares right back.
“I can’t believe such foolish words came out of your mouth,” Magnus barks. “I have not bent over backwards through my entire library for you to just give up.”
“Well, maybe it would be for the better.” He blocks his head from another attack. What is with Magnus and attacking him with books? “We haven’t made any progress on this. And look at you. You’re exhausted, I know you went to bed and woke up before me.”
“This curse isn’t going to fix itself,” Magnus argues, summoning another book to his lap.
“But you should at least take a day’s rest,” Alec insists. He closes the book in Magnus’ hands, earning another glare from the man. “Look, I want this curse dealt with as much as you, but watching you slowly kill yourself doesn’t make me feel good about all of this.”
The warlock purses his lips at his words, hopefully thinking about it. He brackets Magnus’ legs in his and removes the book from his hands.
“Just one evening of rest,” Alec promises. “These books aren’t going anywhere. Let’s just, I don’t know, watch a movie or something. I’ll make you dinner so that you won’t even have to leave the couch.”
Magnus glares at him before scoffing and moving to the couch.
He doesn’t argue about the break and Alec takes that as a win. He gets up and heads into his room. He’s not going to let Magnus sit in clothes that are not meant for comfort for the whole day. Rifling through his dresser he finds the perfect pajamas for the man.
He pulls out the unicorn onesie that Izzy convinced him to wear on Christmas for the kids at Sanctuary. As much as he grumbled about it, the sound of laughter coming from the kids more than made up for his sour attitude. He gets out of his own clothes and puts on a simple t-shirt and sweats. He walks back into the living room and tosses the onesie at Magnus.
“Here’s some pajamas for you.” Magnus holds up the onesie and looks about ready to die.
“You can’t be serious,” he deadpans.
“I am very serious,” Alec says, attempting to hold back his laughter. “You are going to relax today and that means being comfortable.”
“But does it have to be a onesie?” Mangus pouts. “I have pajamas at home I can easily summon—”
“No more magic,” Alec scolds. “You are relaxing for the rest of the day. And don’t hate on the onesie, it’s very comfortable and made a lot of kids laugh at Christmas last year.”
“This feels like a cruel punishment,” Magnus grumbles as he stalks off to the bathroom to change.
Alec heads to the kitchen and gets started on dinner. He grabs the chicken and broccoli from the fridge and some wild rice from the cabinet. He sends a silent thank you to Izzy for stocking up the kitchen this week. He doesn’t have to look long before finding something to make. He and Izzy kind of have a silent agreement. She gets the groceries, which he does help pay for, and he does all the cooking. After Izzy’s celebratory meal of getting her doctorate, it was decided that Alec would do the cooking. A week long bout of food poisoning will do that to anyone, even the chef.
“Okay I take back my comment about this being a punishment, this is the comfiest onesie I have ever worn,” Magnus announces as he comes back into the living room. Alec has to stop himself from gawking at the man.
The onesie is a bit long on Magnus, but the man’s arms look like they are about to bulge out of the sleeves. Most of the outfits that Magnus wears are snug on his arms. The first morning that he came out of his room to find Magnus doing shirtless magical yoga, he ran into the door frame to the bathroom. He blamed it on staying up late which was only a half-lie, but it was better than admitting he was checking out the man.
“Sucks that you don’t have one to wear with me,” Magnus pouts. “We could have had a pajama party.”
“I’m in PJs,” Alec defends, gesturing to his sweats and t-shirt.
“And how boring those are,” Magnus drawls as he flops onto the couch. “Can I at least summon one of my big blankets? Then I promise no magic for the rest of the night.”
Magnus is giving him a pout and puppy dog eyes that look ridiculous on the thirty-three year old man. He pretends to contemplate giving in as he chops broccoli. He is going to say yes, but he can’t let Magnus know he gave in so easily. First, it will be the blanket, then who knows what else he’ll ask to get with his magic.
He holds up a finger. “Just this once. I know what your magic smells like when you use it so I will know if you do later.”
Magnus gives him the biggest grin and snaps his finger. The smell of burnt sugar wafts through the room as the biggest blanket Alec has even seen drapes over Magnus. The warlock lets out a satisfying groan and sinks further into the couch.
“I love this weighted blanket so much,” Magnus moans. “Greatest invention society has ever made. While I normally love a good cocktail and steak paired with a steaming hot bath for magic depletion, I do love just laying in bed with this on top of me. Makes me feel safe and secure when my magic is low.”
“What does it feel like?” Alec asks. He adds the vegetables to the boiling pot and puts a lid on it. He checks on the chicken in the oven and lowers the temp on the wild rice.
“Just lethargic and tired most of the time,” Magnus explains. “On one occasion I was hospitalized with complete magic depletion. Catarina and Raphael chewed me OUT, but a child was saved so I can’t say I regret it.”
“Then it’s a good thing I made you stop for today,” Alec notes. “If you collapse trying to help me I will make sure that Isabelle is your doctor and she can hound you for doing too much.”
“I’ve learned my lesson, Alexander,” Magnus promises.
“I hope so,” he murmurs as he leans against the counter. Magnus has his arm over the back of the couch and his head resting on the backrest. He looks comfortable and relaxed. More relaxed than he’s ever seen the man since this whole fiasco. “Why are you spending so much time on this?”
“What do you mean?”
“It’s just,” Alec gestured to the pile of books, “This seems a lot for one person.”
“Maybe,” Magnus agrees. “But if you think the world would be a better place without you, Alexander, you are wrong.”
Alec wants to argue that his life isn’t worth the cost of Magnus’ but they would just go in circles again. He trusts Magnus to reverse the spell— he does! — but watching the warlock bend over backwards to find the counterspell has his heart aching. It’s obvious he’s going to kill himself trying to help and Alec just doesn’t understand why.
“I told you before that the work that you’re doing is important,” Magnus continues, interrupting his thoughts. Mangus breaks eye contact and gets a distant look in his eyes.
“My parents were horrified to find out their child was a warlock,” Magnus silently admits. “My mother was so horrified by me that she took her own life and my father tried to kill me. He didn’t succeed, obviously but sometimes I wish he had. After I ran away, my life was by no means easy. I had to fight tooth and nail to be someone I love and not look in the mirror and see a monster.”
Alec watches as Magnus traces random lines on the back of the couch. Small sparks shoot out of his fingers, clearly subconsciously, as Magnus talks about his past.
“Everyone thinks the Great Magnus Bane had his life handed to him on a silver platter when it couldn’t be furthest from the truth. Just because I don’t show that the hushed whispers get to me doesn’t mean they don’t affect me.” Magnus looks back at him with a look in his eyes that Alec can’t read. “That’s why I donated to your charity. I don’t know how it slipped under my radar for so long, but Raphael was happy, well as happy as that man is capable of expressing, that you said yes to his invite to the event a few weeks ago.”
“How could I not? Raphael has done a lot to protect the kids who come to the Sanctuary,” he quietly admits. “It would be rude of me not to show my face.”
“Well I’m glad you did so I could officially meet you, even if with new information I had actually known you for almost seven years now,” Magnus chuckles. “You’ve saved so many kids, Alexander. I don’t think you realize that. That’s why I want to save you. So that another me can make it to Merlin’s Sanctuary and have a place to call home and people who truly love them.”
Alec ducks his head at the praise, taking a quick swipe at his eyes. He realizes that the look he didn’t understand was admiration in Magnus’ eyes. He feels his heart beating out of his chest at the words.
“That means a lot,” he finally says, looking back at Magnus. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
Magnus looks like wants to say more but the timer on the oven goes off, signaling food is ready. Alec gets to preparing plates for both of them. Magnus has turned back around and is messing with the remote to find something for them to watch. Alec grabs the plates and drinks and makes his way to the couch.
He hands off one plate and a drink to Magnus and sits on the opposite side of the couch. He sets his drink on the side table and looks at the TV. He lets out a snort as he notices Magnus is going through the romance section. Alec lets out a small resigned sigh, but accepts that he will be forced to watch some cheesy movie. Thankfully most of these he’s already seen thanks to Izzy’s obsession with them. On the few days she has off from the hospital, she spends it on the couch, drinking wine and crying into the glass as Ryan Gosling’s character confronts his lover.
“Most of these are already watched,” Magnus notes. “Something to tell me, Alexander?”
“Izzy loves to cry on her days off,” he jokes. “She says I don’t understand what it’s like to watch two people fall in love. I had to remind her that I have had to suffer watching her and Simon get together. She threw a pillow at me.”
“Serves her right,” Magnus chuckles, taking a bite of the food. Alec watches as that smirk on the warlock’s face turns to awe as he stares down at the food. He takes another bite and realizes it wasn’t a fluke and starts to dig in. “This may be the best thing you’ve cooked for me so far. Where was this the past two weeks I was staying here?”
“Are you kidding?” Alec laughs. “You barely let me cook for you, anytime I came back home you had take out scattered around you. And when I did, it was only breakfast.”
“Well now I am going to ask you to cook for me every night,” Magnus says. “Have you thought about being a personal chef?”
“On top of all the work I do at Merlin’s Sanctuary?” Alec laughs. “I am already lucky I am able to mostly work from home for most of these past two weeks, but the team is starting to wonder when I am coming back. Apparently the kids are asking about me.”
“Why don’t you go in to see them?” Mangus asks, picking up the remote and pressing play on a movie. Out of the corner of his eye, he sees the words P.S. I Love You.
“Because these kids are still coming into their magic. If they see me like this,“ he gestures to his almost transparent arms, “I’m afraid they are going to accidentally hurt themselves in the process of helping me. I’ve had to wear long sleeves and mainly stick to my office the one day I go in each week.”
“That’s adorable,” Magnus coos. He sets his empty plate on the coffee table and grabs his wine and settles in for the movie.
Alec follows suit and grabs the throw blanket off the back of the couch. He settles in and starts to watch the movie. Alec realizes that he’s in for a bad time when the main character’s husband dies at the beginning of the movie. As he continues to drink his glass of wine, he starts to get more engrossed in the movie.
About half way through the movie, he jumps at a sudden weight on his shoulder. Magnus is passed out. They must have moved closer to each other at some point during the movie. Looking at the man, he is fast asleep and probably wouldn’t even wake up if Alec called his name. This close, Alec can really see the details on the man’s face. His plucked brows, the shimmery remnants of his makeup, even the crows feet he denies are there. He’s beautiful.
Alec raises his arm and wraps it around Magnus, pulling the man closer. Magnus lets out a satisfied hum and pulls his legs up on the couch. Not one to wake a sleeping man, Alec continues to watch the film. He can feel tears prick at the corners of his eyes as the main character reads letters from her deceased husband. He can’t imagine the kind of loss she’s feeling.
He’s finished his glass of wine and sets it on the side table. He feels his eyes start to droop as the main character listens to the last letter her late husband sent her. He falls asleep with a comforting weight on his side and with an idea he needs to talk about with Jace tomorrow.
---
“You want me to do what?” Jace asks, staring at Alec like he’s grown two heads. The letter he handed to Jace is getting crumpled as anger radiates off his body.
Alec can’t even look his brother in the face. He sits on the steps to his townhouse, hands clasped, looking at the ground. After last night and waking up with Magnus sleeping on top of him, he realizes that his appreciation for the man has turned into affection. And if the way that Magnus smiled at him in embarrassment when he woke up, the feeling was mutual.
He only has a week left until the curse takes full effect and he fully disappears. He doesn’t regret making Magnus take the rest of the day off yesterday, the man needed the sleep. His drunken thoughts wouldn’t leave him when he awoke.
“I said when I die, will you give that letter to Magnus?” he murmurs. Flinching when the envelope smacked the top of his head.
“Are you an idiot?” Jace hisses at him. “There’s still a week left before the curse takes effect! Don’t give up so easily you idiot.”
“I’m not,” Alec defends. “I am just making sure that Magnus doesn’t blame himself if he doesn’t find a cure.” Alec lets out a long sigh and runs a hand through his hair. “You haven’t seen him, Jace. He’s literally killing himself trying to help me. I know that if he doesn’t figure this mess out, he’s going to blame himself, and I don’t want that for him.”
He can feel the heat of Jace’s glare. He knows it’s a lot to ask for. That’s why he stepped out of the house to talk to Jace about it. He told Magnus they were going to go for a walk— which was true. He and Jace went around a few blocks to get some fresh air while his brother teased him about Magnus as he retold the events of the previous night. One look at Jace’s face told him that he’s happy about the interaction.
“You really do have a hero complex don’t you?” Jace sighs, he kicks Alec’s leg to the side and sits down next to him. Jace looks more haggard than he did before.
Guilt eats him up by asking Jace to do this. He didn’t want to go to Izzy with this task because she would attack him for such a simple request. Jace was the perfect one to ask because he was there the whole time they were dealing with Max’s funeral. He was the one who always found him when he would run and hide from everyone. Sit beside him as tears he held back would fall. He’s seen him at his most vulnerable and now here they are again.
“I assume that with this letter it means you’ve accepted that you’re not going to make it,” Jace inquires. “You wouldn’t ask me to do this if it meant you wanted to keep fighting.”
Alec nods his head, not ready to say it out loud. Even before last night, he knew that it wasn’t going to happen. He watched as Magnus got more and more panicked as the weeks went on with not an end in sight. The warlock must have gone through his entire library by now with how the books changed daily as he sat in Alec’s living room, eyes glued to the pages.
“I’m sorry to ask you to do this, but I figured it would be better to get the letter from someone else than finding it later, after I—” he chokes on his words. Jace wraps an arm around his back and pulls him into his side. His jaw shakes as he takes in a breath, trying to get control of his emotions.
“I don’t want to die, Jace,” he whispers.
“I know you don’t,” Jace reassures him. “Anyone can see that. A part of you may have given up already, but the Alec Lightwood I know doesn’t go out quietly, and Shade would definitely want to see those damn Belcourts go to prison for their crimes.”
“I want nothing more than to see those bastards rot,” Alec says, before letting out a small laugh. “Can you believe that Camille thought I was straight?”
Jace lets out a bark of a laugh. “Oh my god, don’t remind me. When Izzy told me how she approached you at the gala, Clary had to hold me back from going over and making fun of her. You'd think she’d get the message after she delivered that ugly ass statue to the sanctuary.”
Alec laughs at the memory. That statute was the ugliest thing he ever laid eyes on. Camille clearly didn’t have any taste nor did any research on him when she brought that in. Maia actually gagged as Alec carried it to his office after an awkward goodbye from Camille. Her smile had too much teeth, and she was a bit too happy with him not accepting her offer for dinner.
Jace lets out a yelp as Alec springs to his feet. He’s such an idiot, how could he not have realized it before. Alec turns to Jace with wide eyes. Jace looks at him wildly before it clicks into place for him as well.
“That fucking bitch!” Jace shouts as he stands. “For someone who hates all magic, she sure seems to use it a lot.”
“I need to tell Magnus.” Alec doesn’t wait for a response and rushes inside to tell the warlock. He prepares himself for more books to be thrown at his head when he tells Magnus.
He misses Jace tearing the letter to pieces and tossing the remains to the wind.
---
“So it was the Belcourts this whole time?” Raphael asks. The Commissioner leans against the railing and frowns over at him.
“Looks like it,” Shade answers.
He holds out a hard drive with all the evidence the man would need to make an arrest and ruin the Belcourt’s reputation. It was finally happening. The attack on Alec proved that the children under the care of Merlin’s Sanctuary were a threat to their empire and they wanted Alec gone for good. Not only that but he has the names of all the dirty cops who work for them.
Once he hands this over to Raphael, it will be official. Max’s murders will be punished for their crimes, ten years later. The gust of wind glides across the rooftop they find themselves on. Shade can’t stop the grin on his face as Raphael takes that flash drive.
“You realize that with this hard drive a lot of people are going to come after you,” Raphael informs him. “The Belcourt’s are powerful and have the money to get away.”
“They have no idea about any of this,” Shade says. “All they know is that I have been a thorn in their side for the past decade. They have no idea that I have been collecting evidence on them. I made sure to not leave a trace when I did my recon for information.”
Raphael raises a doubtful eyebrow at him. “I hope you realize this means I now have to be careful where I go.”
“No need to worry about that. I hear there’s a vigilante in this city who protects its citizens,” he jokes.
For the second time that Shade can remember, he sees Raphael smirk at those words. The first time was when Shade complained about their mutual companion getting kidnapped too regularly. He may have been running on two hours of sleep at the time but he’s pretty sure he heard the man laugh.
“Speaking of citizens, Magnus hasn’t been kidnapped lately,” Raphael notes as he pockets the harddrive. “What did you say to him?”
“I didn’t do a single thing,” Shade answers truthfully. “Seems that he was preoccupied with a client that took his whole attention.”
“That so?” Raphael says, giving him a once over. “Well either way, it’s always a pleasure talking to you. Keep that device of yours on you twenty-four seven, I may contact you for follow up questions. I don’t know if you’re an organized man or not.”
Raphael waves goodbye as he enters the stairwell, going back down into the precinct. Shade lets out a sigh of relief and feels any tension leave his body. He had no doubt that Raphael wouldn’t take the drive, but that didn’t stop his anxiety about the exchange.
He walks over to the balcony and takes in the city. His work isn’t completely done yet. People are still going to be attacked and robbed, but now he won’t have to worry about another warlock child being killed at the hands of monsters.
A portal whooshes to life behind him. Shade can’t help but laugh — talk about being impatient. He takes one more look over the city and turns to step into the portal. A warm aroma is the first thing he registers. The next is that familiar magic working its way around his body as his outfit changes into a suit.
Alec lightheartedly glares in Magnus’ direction. “You couldn’t wait five more minutes?”
“It’s not my fault that you decided to have that meeting with Raphael on the same night as our date,” Magnus huffs, hands on hips. “I thought you were a better planner than this.”
“It was important,” Alec shrugs, making his way over to his boyfriend.
The man looks stunning like he always does, but now there’s an air around him that feels lighter. Gone are the bags under his eyes and the tension in his shoulders. After they realized what caused the curse, Izzy forced Magnus to bed rest for a whole week. Magnus didn’t even argue as the spell completely drained him of his magic. She cursed him out for being so reckless and not waiting another day to do the spell.
Alec had to catch him before he collapsed on the floor. He would have freaked out and called Izzy immediately if Magnus hadn’t come to mere seconds later with a triumphant grin on his face. Alec had kissed the ridiculous man right there and then. Jace had let out a gagging sound at the display, but he didn’t care. He had the rest of his life to make it up to his brother.
“Yes well, I’m going to drag you through the portal myself if you do that again,” Magnus threatens as he wraps his arms around Alec’s neck. Alec smiles into the kiss and pulls him closer.
“I promise to never help innocent children again on the same night as a planned date,” Alec jokes, earning a light tap to the back of his head.
“You just have to twist my words don’t you, Shade?”
“What can I say, Mr. Bane? You’ve been a horrible influence on me all these years,” Alec teases.
“Now, that I believe,” Magnus laughs. “I remember the first time you saved me you barely spoke two words.”
“Your beauty swept me off my feet,” Alec admits. “I couldn’t trust myself to not blurt out something dumb.”
“You’re adorable,” Magnus says, pressing another kiss to his lips. He pulls out of the embrace and snaps his fingers again. Another portal comes to life within his house. “Now I believe we are on a date and I’d hate for us to lose our reservation.”
“Whatever you say, gorgeous,” Alec teases, looping his arm with Magnus’ and stepping through.
In which Alec and Magnus got married when Alec marched down the aisle and kissed Magnus, unbeknown to them both.
This is my ‘Accidental Marriage’ square for @shadowhunterbingo.
When Magnus stormed into Alec’s wedding, he had nothing on his mind except getting there. Truthfully, he didn't know what he expected would happen after he arrived. Perhaps, Alec would yell at him to leave. Perhaps, he’d end up awkwardly watching as Alec married a woman he could never love. Perhaps… something else would happen but even contained within that last unlikely perhaps, Magnus hadn’t ever expected Alec to do what he did.
He didn’t expect Alec to call off his wedding on the spot. He didn’t expect Alec to walk down the aisle, dismiss his mother and pull Magnus into a breathtaking kiss but that’s exactly what happened. It seemed that Alexander was always taking him by surprise, even when Magnus expected him to do the opposite of what he ended up doing.
That day at his wedding was no different and Magnus was never more taken back and pleased by the outcome. It was selfish, Magnus knew but if he was being honest, it felt nice for someone to choose him. It felt nice for his efforts to pay off and for him to have helped Alec not make what would have been in Magnus’ opinion, a horrendous life lasting mistake. It felt good that whatever he’d done had helped Alec be true to himself.
It was the perfect start for something wonderful, if Magnus was not immediately scared that Alec would come to regret it. Magnus knew that he was a lot to deal with. Magnus knew that Alec’s family and his peers were going to be less than accepting of the public display that Alec had just made. If Alec didn’t come to resent him for what he’d chosen to do, this could be something wonderful but Magnus was fearful that this wonderful would turn worrisome fast.
That’s what Magnus had been thinking about following Alec's wedding and their kiss. He had not been thinking about shadowhunter custom of kissing at weddings or anything more serious than the fact that Alec had just kissed the breath right out of him. He’d been thinking about that and the fact that Maryse Lightwood had looked angry enough to bite Alec’s head off, though she showed an immense amount of strength in not doing so.
When Alec was inevitably called away for his shadowhunter duties, Magnus went home with a bit of enthusiasm in his step. He walked home smiling and trying not to check his phone every few minutes like a school girl waiting for a message from a crush. He’d walked home wondering when Alec would call him again and when they’d see each other next.
He had not been thinking about the fact that he and Alec had just gotten married, in the eyes of the shadowhunters at least, because he had not known that to be the case and Alec hadn’t either but that didn’t mean that it wasn’t true.
.
They found out nearly three days later. Magnus and Alec had been walking through the Institute together, intent on finally having their first date when Maryse Lightwood had barreled around the corner, clutching a paper tight in her grasp and looking furious enough that Magnus worried she might catch fire any moment.
Maryse looked to Magnus once and then promptly looked to her son and refused to acknowledge Magnus’ presence again. He might as well be a fly on the wall. Magnus was pretty sure Maryse would much prefer he be that way.
“Call and tell them to fix it,” Maryse demanded as she thrust the now crumbled piece of paper at Alec’s chest.
Alec’s eyes widened. He took a half step back before he reached for the paper his mother held out. Confusion was written across his face and it was obvious to Magnus that Alec was just as in the dark as he was.
“What are you talking about?” Alec asked as his eyes started to skim the paper quickly.
“Fix it,” Maryse ground out furiously, offering no immediate explanation. Her eyes snapped to Magnus before looking back to her son. “I will not have the Clave thinking you intended to marry a warlock with your embarrassing little stunt.”
Alec’s face twisted at her words, as did Magnus’. The thought was almost laughable. Even if he and Alec had wanted to get married, and it was far too soon for that, the Clave would never have let them. Warlocks did not marry Shadowhunters. Shadowhunters married Shadowhunters and that’s all the Clave allowed.
Magnus leaned forward to peer over Alec’s shoulder, skimming the letter that was addressed to Alec himself from Jia Penhallow, the current Consul. Most of it was the word fluff that Magnus was used to having to read through in every formal interaction he had with the shadowhunters. They could never cut to the chase and say what they wanted but right at the bottom, Magnus found a paragraph that explained pretty well what Magnus needed to know.
‘In lieu of recent events, the Clave has decided to honor your dedication to one Magnus Bane and certify your marriage as official. It is the Clave’s hope that you and your husband will help strengthen our ties to the downworld and that the officiation of your union will show as a good faith attempt to bridge the gaps between our people. I look forward to speaking with you in more depth about this shortly.’
Alec shifted and Magnus could see suddenly that there was another crumpled paper under the letter. It held the official seal of the Consul, along with the elegant decorative letterhead that announced the paper as an official declaration of marriage between one Magnus Bane and Alexander Lightwood.
Alec seemed just as shocked as Magnus was and when neither of them said a word, Maryse snapped again. “Fix it, Alec,” she hissed, before she was turning to storm away, leaving Alec holding the evidence of their marriage in his loose, blindsided hands.
Alec finally turned to Magnus. “I didn’t mean to marry you,” he rushed out.
In normal circumstances, Magnus might have pretended to be offended at that but he sensed that it wasn’t quite an appropriate time. They hadn't even had a first date. They hadn’t even kissed, besides their very public kiss at Alec’s, their, wedding. Despite all of that, they were married.
Magnus was a lot to deal with even without considering the fact that they’d accidentally declared themselves for each other. “I didn’t either,” Magnus said finally. He wanted to be clear that he hadn’t walked into Alec’s wedding and intended to trick him into marrying him but Alec didn’t seem to need the assurance.
“I can’t believe they’d let that happen.” Alec met Magnus’ eyes, as if Magnus might possibly have some kind of explanation but Magnus was just as shocked as Alec was. For the Clave to certify a wedding not only between a warlock and a shadowhunter but between a male shadowhunter and a male warlock - well, Magnus would have thought he’d die before he’d see the day and that was saying something, considering his very large lifespan.
“I find it hard to believe too. I’ve heard Jia is… progressive but I didn’t expect her to be that progressive.” Magnus laughed nervously but Alec seemed too frazzled to realize how carefully Magnus was watching Alec, waiting for a reaction that would tell him if Alec was terribly upset at everyone thinking he’d married not only a warlock but Magnus.
“She’s not,” Alec said quickly. “They think the downworld is going to revolt. They’re doing anything they can to try and keep the peace, surprisingly enough. I suppose I can see how a marriage between a shadowhunter and a downworlder, especially the High Warlock, would make them look good.”
Slowly, Magnus nodded. Alec was right. There wasn’t a single downworlder who wouldn’t be entirely caught off guard by the news but it did signify a change in the Clave, one that just might be enough to make people complacent. Magnus opened his mouth to respond but Alec looked up suddenly and his expression was intense enough that Magnus fell silent, waiting for him to speak.
“We can’t tell them we didn’t want to get married,” Alec said, assured enough that it took Magnus a moment to even respond.
Slowly, Magnus raised an eyebrow, “You want them to think we’re married?” Magnus asked. “We don’t know each other that well and… Well, marriage is a big deal and I don’t think either of us thinks we’re ready for that.”
“But you don’t care what the Clave thinks,” Alec insisted. “It doesn’t matter to you if they think we’re married.”
At that, Magnus paused. He wasn’t wrong. Magnus didn’t particularly care what the Clave thought of he and Alec’s relationship. “You care,” Magnus said softly. “You want them to think you married me?” Magnus asked in disbelief. He expected Alec to realize all at once that he did not want that at all but that didn’t appear to be what happened.
Instead, Alec looked confused. “Why would I care? If I was worried about any backlash, I wouldn’t have kissed you. If anything, them deciding we're married is a relief.” Alec laughed softly but Magnus wasn’t quite following what was so funny. “I thought they might derune me. Deciding to accept our partnership is a far cry from that, even if it isn’t really what we intended.”
Alec’s brows furrowed as something seemed to occur to him. “I just don’t think we can correct them. They’re doing it for their own gain but Jia is right. It is good for the downworld and for the Clave. If we corrected them, they might decide that it was a mistake all together and never allow it to happen again.”
Alec’s eyes flickered up to Magnus hesitantly. “Unless, you don’t want them to think we’re married,” he said anxiously. “Then, I can let them know to absolve it.”
Magnus blinked and said nothing for far too long. The Clave had caught Magnus off guard but Alec had too. What shadowhunter would want his people to think he’d married a warlock? What shadowhunter would be thinking of future relationships between their people at a time like this? What shadowhunter would be worried that Magnus might not want to be publicly married to a shadowhunter and not the reverse?
Alexander, apparently. His sweet endlessly surprising shadowhunter.
“I don’t mind if your government thinks we’re married,” Magnus said carefully. “I just thought you might,” he insisted. Magnus had been worried Alec might regret kissing him. This was so much bigger than that and he needed to know that Alec was sure.
Alec’s face crumpled in confusion again. “Why would I care?” He asked earnestly.
A soft disbelieving laugh came to Magnus’ lips. “Because you married a dastardly warlock by the name of Magnus Bane?” Magnus posed. “And your mother didn’t seem too pleased and this is far more than you signed up for when you kissed me and-”
Magnus fell silent suddenly because Alec reached out and clasped Magnus’ hand with his own. “Magnus,” Alec said, a soft amused smile coming across his face. “I’d have been honored to marry you someday. I don’t mind if everyone thinks we already are.”
Magnus felt his tongue still in his mouth. No words came out even though Magnus felt like he should find something to say. Finally, Magnus simply nodded and Alec grinned a little wider.
Alec let go of his arm and suddenly looked a touch nervous, which Magnus didn’t understand until Alec opened his mouth again. “Could I uh, kiss you?” Alec asked softly.
This time, it was Magnus who couldn’t help but grin. Alexander, his pseudo husband, was nervous to ask if they could kiss. It was adorable and that’s all that Magnus could think. Magnus nodded and when Alec leaned in to press their lips together, Magnus realized that it was their second kiss ever and that they’d done it, in the eyes of the Clave at least, as husbands.
At least Magnus knew that his relationship with Alec was never going to be boring, if the first three days of it were anything to go by.
( @shadowhunterbingo square: Magic)
Reyhill, Teen, no warnings
(Read on AO3)
Lorenzo’s magic is unstable. There’s little he can do about it - whatever they did to him, whatever that potion was they tipped into his mouth against his will - is doing something to his powers. He has some control over it if he can reach into the deepest parts of his connection to it, but the way it reacts to any sound, the way it startles against his will from his fingertips, isn’t good.
It’s erratic and it’s dangerous, both of which he could tolerate when the only people around were the people who did this to him. But now, left alone, he wonders how long he might have to stay here to wait it out before it’s safe enough to seek help.
He’s also in pain. So much pain that the slightest movement is enough to set off his magic in reaction to the sharp lightning bolts of pain that shoot through his nerves with every movement, with every too-sharp breath.
He wonders if he won’t die from the war inside of himself first, tugging at his very essence.
“Lorenzo?” He hears his name spoken in a relieved tone. “Thank the Angel we found you-”
“Stay away,” Lorenzo says, stilling Andrew in the doorway. “My magic is unstable.”
As if on cue, the golden yellow magic that was previously crackling lightly at his fingertips flares up, and Lorenzo has just enough awareness to hold his hands out to his sides, doing his best to direct it into harmless beams to either side of them that damage only concrete walls.
“You need to go,” Lorenzo says.
Andrew hesitates. Lorenzo’s magic, feeling the intrusion in the otherwise empty space, reaches out for the Nephilim. Lorenzo feels it pooling around him, tugging away, straining to be freed from Lorenzo’s stubborn hold on it.
“No,” Andrew says finally, taking a step closer. He motions for the other Shadowhunters who arrived with him to leave, an order they don't hesitate to follow at the sight of Lorenzo's erratic magic.
“Andrew, please. I don’t know how much longer I can contain it,” Lorenzo manages, gritting the words out through clenched teeth.
“I’m not leaving you here in pain,” Andrew says. It’s a promise that’s as terrifying as it is reassuring to Lorenzo. “I’m not leaving you here alone.”
There’s an unspoken fear lingering behind that last sentence: Andrew doesn’t want to leave him here alone in case this is it - in case he dies here at the hand of his own magic.
“You goddamn stubborn-” Lorenzo starts, but stops abruptly as the magic flares again. It takes everything he has left to contain it, but he knows it won't be enough this time. His magic crackles along his skin like static electricity.
"Do you trust me?" Andrew asks rhetorically, knowing full well that Lorenzo does. "Because I trust you."
“I can't… Andrew, run!” Lorenzo warns, barely able to grit the words out through clenched teeth.
To his horror, Andrew doesn't run. Or, he does, but he runs closer. Andrew runs straight to Lorenzo and grabs his hands, clutching them tight even as Lorenzo tries to break contact and pull away.
“I got you,” Andrew says to him as if that’s enough. Maybe it is. Maybe it has to be because Lorenzo can feel the last thin thread of control he has snap just as Andrew pulls Lorenzo up against him, wrapping his arms around the warlock. “I got you.”
Lorenzo’s magic explodes out of him in every direction. It looks like a shockwave, one that starts with him and reverberates throughout the entire room in one wave of powerful, destructive energy that practically obliterates everything in its path from Lorenzo to the cement walls of the room around them which crack upon impact.
Everything except Andrew, who remains safe and wholly untouched, arms still wrapped around Lorenzo.
“Are you okay?” Lorenzo asks Andrew, reaching a hand out to check him with magic, except there’s not a single drop left in him to use. “Did I hurt-”
“I’m fine. I’m totally fine, Ren,” Andrew promises him. “Are you okay?”
“I-” Lorenzo starts, but stops again, trying to control his ragged breathing and shaking hands. It takes a few minutes for Lorenzo to calm down enough to process what just happened, surveying the damage to the room around him as his breathing slows and evens out.
“How did you know?” Lorenzo asks finally.
“I didn’t,” Andrew admits. “But I had faith. You wouldn’t hurt me, and your magic is a part of you. I took a chance and followed my gut.”
“You took a-” Lorenzo starts, breaking off in a huff of incredulous laughter. “You could’ve died.”
“I didn’t. And neither did you. Can we please just focus on that for now and get out of here? You can yell at me for being stubborn when we’re both safe at home,” Andrew pleads.
Lorenzo shakes his head but allows Andrew to lead him in a few tentative steps forward, closer to safety - closer to home.
It took an entire week to see him again. He’s pretty sure that Luke intentionally kept Alec away from him after the disaster that was their first drift, and honestly, Magnus can’t blame him. With how horribly he failed in getting Alec to come back from the drift, he’s sure that Luke doesn’t want Magnus anywhere near his son anytime soon.
So imagine his surprise when he leaves the cafeteria to go to his normal spot in the hangar, and he finds none other than Alec himself. The man looks lost in thought as he leans over the railing looking at the jaegers in maintenance. His legs swing back and forth from where they hang off the rafter. The sparks of the welder’s torches illuminate Alec’s face in a soft glow that makes his eyes shine brighter than Magnus has ever seen them.
Ever since their spar, Magnus can see something in Alec that the others have yet to see. Behind those eyes is a man who has yet to find himself again after all the bad luck life has thrown at him. Magnus knows that Alec will be an amazing co-pilot; that he has the amazing capability to be the best one of their generation.
The guilt of what happened to Max and the rest of his family probably still weighs on Alec. Magnus knows what that's like. He heard Ragnor and re-lived his death when he and Alec had drifted, but it also hadn't been his first rodeo with controlling his thoughts and emotions in a jaeger. The last time he was in a jaeger, his co-pilot, Ragnor, had gotten ripped out of the cockpit while they were still connected. He had felt his fear and pain as the monster drug his claws through his friend’s body.
He takes a deep breath and makes his way over. Alec doesn’t turn to greet him when he sits down next to him. His tray of food is untouched on his lap as he tries to come up with something not as lame as ‘how are you?’ It’s been a while since he’s seen Alec here.
“I see why you come up here now,” Alec says, interrupting Magnus’ thoughts. Magnus follows his gaze to the workers below. “I figured it was the best spot for us to talk.”
“I mean I like coming up here because it gets me away from Valentine and Jonathan,” Magnus answers truthfully. “If I have to hear one more time from Jonathan about him and his father being the best pilots out there, I am going to stab him with my fork. But talking is also good.”
The admission gets a small laugh from Alec. It brings a smile to his face that Alec has not completely shut down his emotions. Magnus lets his eyes wander over the workers and the crews below. He’s met a few of them for his jaeger; wonderful people who are honored to be able to touch Horned Warlock, knowing its history. They were all thrilled to bring it back to its original glory while also respecting the pilot whose life is no longer there.
Magnus had to hold back tears when he saw a cartoon version of Ragnor right below the jaeger’s name on the chest plate. He asked one of the guys to give him a lift to the insignia so that he could greet his old friend. As his hand caressed the cartoon, all he could think about was how Ragnor would have hated it. His friend hated that people marketed the jaegers as toys and merchandise when they were actually killing machines.
“That’s like making a toy tank!” Ragnor had protested.
“Ragnor they do make toy tanks,” Magnus had laughed.
“Well I still don’t like it.”
“I wanted to say I was sorry,” Alec says, causing Magnus to whip his head towards him, knocking himself out of his thoughts. “The simulations don’t prepare you for what drifting is actually like and I made it difficult for the both of us.”
“Alexander,” Magnus says. “I don’t blame you for what happened.”
He wants to reach out and comfort the man, but he doesn’t know if his touch is welcome at this point anymore. They used to sit up here, shoulder to shoulder, hip to hip, and just talk about life or sometimes, just not talk at all. He misses those moments.
“What happened in that cockpit was entirely on me,” he admits. “I shouldn’t have let the death of Ragnor affect me — affect us — and let you chase as far as you did. I should have gotten us out faster — should have been in control of my emotions better.”
Alec shakes his head and finally turns and meets Magnus’ eyes. There’s pain and regret laced in them that Magnus wishes aren’t there.
“No, I should have been more prepared about what could happen and what I should have expected,” Alec states. “When I saw Max — when I saw my brother again, I was happy even if it was reliving the worst moment of my life. Then the emotions from that day got muddled and I forgot where I was.”
“Just let me apologize dammit,” Magnus curses, raising his arms in a huff. “Your father has been giving me the stink eye all week and I’m pretty sure he’s planning my funeral.”
Alec lets out a boisterous laugh at his admission. Workers right below them look up at the noise. Magnus slaps Alec’s shoulder in jest as the weight that he’s been carrying around starts to disappear. He was so worried that he had royally fucked things up between him and Alec that day.
“Oh my god, I am so sorry,” Alec wheezes through his laughs. “Luke is very protective of me.”
“Yeah, I gathered that when he wouldn’t let me know how you were doing,” Magnus grumbles, leaning forward on the railing with a pout. Alec leans forward, mimicking his stance, and bumps his shoulder. It’s been so long since he’s seen Alec smile that he can’t even pretend to be offended anymore. “Oh, don’t look at me like that.”
“Like what?” Alec asks, grin still on his face.
Magnus rolls his eyes and gestures to the man. “Like that! Like all is clear between us and that your father doesn’t want to kill me.”
“He won’t kill you, promise.” Alec makes an ‘x’ over his heart. “He’s protective, yes, but he also needs to learn that I can do things on my own and make my own choices. He thinks you manipulated me into becoming your co-pilot when all you did was give me the push I needed to finally do what I always wanted to do.”
Magnus feels his heart stutter at the words. If he didn’t have budding feelings for Alec before, he does now. This is the spark he saw in Alec during their spar, surrounded by potential candidates for his co-pilot. He remembers the way Alec rolled his eyes at the other people Magnus went up against, clearly seeing what the other was doing wrong.
“It led to a big fight, which is why I am up here,” Alec says, running a hand through his hair. “I couldn’t take him coddling me anymore. I understand his concerns and fears, but I can’t just live on the sidelines anymore when I am one of the top potential jaeger pilots we have. We need everyone we can get to stop these Kaiju from destroying our world.”
“I’m glad you’ve finally seen the potential I saw in you,” Magnus notes with pride in his voice.
Oh the smile that graces Alec’s face as the man ducks his head at his praise has Magnus' heart about to beat out his chest.
“Yeah well, it took some time but I got there eventually,” Alec agrees, looking over at him with admiration that Magnus surely doesn’t deserve. “Thank you, Magnus. You never gave up on me.”
“And I never will,” he admits, taking a risk and places his hand on Alec’s leg, giving a gentle squeeze. “You and I are drift compatible. That’s rare to come by with people not bound by familial ties.”
Alec eyes break contact with him to look down at his hand. He slowly places his hand on top of Magnus’ and looks up at him again.
“I hope I don’t mess this up.” Alec lets out a nervous laugh. “There’s a lot at stake here.”
Magnus flips his hand around and laces his hand with Alec’s. Suddenly it’s hard to breathe. The air around them turns hot at the contact and Magnus knows it's not from the workers below them.
“You could never,” Magnus assures him. His thumb caresses the back of Alec’s hand. “Though you have an amazing jaeger co-pilot as your partner who would never let you fall.”
Alec snorts at his words. “Tell that to our first time drifting. What a disaster that was.”
“But now we know what to expect and how to power through. Don’t quit on me just yet, Alexander.”
“Never,” Alec quickly responds. “You’re stuck with me.”
