Reading Time: 144 Minutes

Title: Memento Sperare
Author: Twigen
Fandom: Shadowhunters
Genre: Established Relationship, Paranormal/Supernatural, Romance, Slash, Urban Fantasy
Relationship(s): Alec Lightwood/Magnus Bane
Content Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Major Character Death, Torture, Violence – Graphic , Temporary Major Character Death, Canon-level violence, Canon-level torture
Beta: Alpha readers: Malucy, Lily25, and Imali Fegen
Word Count: 70,557
Summary: Alec Lightwood and Magnus Bane met months before Clary Fray ever even heard of the Shadow World. When the Circle and Valentine Morgenstern suddenly appear back on the scene, Magnus and Alec’s relationship has major implications for the way events play out: a missed collision; captured rogue Shadowhunters; and a mother gets to tell her daughter the secrets she’s kept hidden for eighteen years.

There are still challenges; Valentine is creating havoc between Shadowhunters and Downworlders, the Clave has its own agenda, and a new choice might give them the boon they need to deal with it all.
Artist: Halestrom

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Chapter 1

The familiar pulsing of Pandemonium’s base pounded through Alec Lightwood’s body as he threaded his way through the crowd. The writhing mass of bodies, both Mundane and Downworlder, brushed against him, bouncing off him like a wave. Most of the Downworlders gave way when they saw his runes, but, to the Mundanes, he was just another face in the crowd. Ahead of him, the VIP area was like an island in the sea of bodies. The dais was raised above the rest of the crowd, and the reason for Alec’s visit to Pandemonium was seated like a king observing his loyal subjects.

Magnus Bane, High Warlock of Brooklyn, looked out over the crowds, lounging languidly back against the cushions of his couch, surrounded by a small crowd of friends that he’d collected throughout his very long life. His eyes, outlined darkly, scanned the crowd as though looking for someone. When his eyes fell on the approaching Shadowhunter, his gaze lingered.

Alec smiled slightly as he reached the steps to the platform and looked up. “Greetings, Mr. Bane. May I join you?” he asked semi-formally. Alec couldn’t help but admire Magnus as one corner of a beautiful mouth tilted up in an ever so slight smirk.

The Warlock looked at him for a moment longer, face expressionless. “Mr. Lightwood,” he said in greeting. “Please, join me.” He looked around at his entourage, and they dispersed slightly to the seating along the edges of the platform, leaving Magnus alone on his couch.

Alec took the few steps and approached carefully. The urge to do something he really shouldn’t do in public was hard to resist. That smirking mouth was so tempting on a variety of levels. “Thank you,” Alec said, glancing around to see who was paying attention. There were numerous pairs of eyes looking at the Shadowhunter talking to the Warlock.

A quick twist of Magnus’ hand and a gentle flare of blue light that blended right in with the strobing effect dampened all sound around them. “There. Now we have a bit of privacy, at least from prying ears,” Magnus said, leaning ever so slightly closer to Alec’s position o the couch. “Unfortunately, I can’t do much about the prying eyes without drawing more attention.” He smiled coyly at Alec and draped his arm over the back of the couch. “Now, darling. What brings you? I know how much you love this part of my domain.”

Alec briefly returned the smile and leaned back against the couch, which just so happened to take him into range of Magnus’ hand. Fingers immediately began plucking at his shirt. “We got word of demons draining Mundanes of blood for reasons unknown. They’ve killed seven Mundanes so far. We need to figure out why they’re after Mundane blood.”

Looking around his club briefly, Magnus frowned. “Odd. What on Earth would they be doing that for?” he asked, muttering to himself as he contemplated the situation. He looked back up at Alec, still frowning. “What do you need from me?”

Alec quirked an eyebrow. “Can you keep an eye out here? Let me know if you spot anything suspicious?” He paused a moment. “I wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t important to figure out what they’re doing with it. Someone is after Mundi blood, and we need to know why they’re leaving a trail of dead bodies in their wake.”

He knew this wouldn’t be a simple yes or no answer from Magnus. He was the High Warlock of Brooklyn, something that carried a great deal of weight and responsibility along with it. As a leader among the Downworlders, Magnus had a duty to protect their interests, and the Downworlders who flocked to his club knew he had their backs. They respected him. Reporting anything to Shadowhunters could damage that respect.

Magnus kept his gaze fixed on Alec for a long moment where he said nothing, obviously considering the situation. Finally, he nodded once. “I cannot promise to let you know of anything suspicious.” He quirked an eyebrow and smirked slightly as he glanced back out over the crowd. “But I will look into everything suspicious myself and try to find out what brand of mischief this is.”

Alec nodded. That was the response he’d expected, and it was more than enough. “Thank you, Mags.” A finger dragged down the back of his arm in a brief press of contact acknowledging the thanks.

“Will you be over tonight?” Magnus asked, his eyes flashing briefly with something warm for just the two of them now that their official business was over.

“Yeah,” Alec said, a slow smile stretching across his face. “If you want me.”

“Pretty boy, that’s something you never have to ask,” Magnus said, a slight smirk on his own face. “I always want you.”

Still smiling, Alec stood slowly. “Then, I will see you later.” He wished he could lean down and drop a kiss on that smirking mouth, but there were still far too many eyes on them.

“Soon,” Magnus replied, gazing up at him. His fingers twitched on the back of the couch like he wanted to reach for Alec.

“Soon.”

Magnus let his wards drop from around them with a languid wave of his hand. The sound of the bass pumping through the club rushed back in, curling around them like something alive. Alec set one last lingering look towards the Warlock and then turned to leave the club. Alec threaded his way through the dancing bodies again, stopping briefly as he made the last turn to glance back. Magnus was watching him still. Their eyes locked one last time before he was gone.

Outside, the chill of the night air assaulted his face, a sharp difference from the humid warmth inside the club. Alec activated his stealth rune and faded into the New York crowds, heading towards the nearest subway station that he could take back to the Institute. Report in, change, and head back out. That was his plan, and unless something serious came up, that was what he intended to stick to.

The trip back was quiet. The abandoned facade of the Institute loomed up out of the darkness as he drew closer. Alec stopped walking for a moment, drawing in a deep breath. As much as the Institute was home, he never felt like he truly belonged at the deepest levels. Still, he had a duty to do, and do it he would. Climbing the steps, he slipped into the vestibule, letting the familiar scene of activity ground him. He nodded at those who acknowledged his entrance and made his way past them to the command table where siblings, Jace and Isabelle, were standing, looking at the activity in the area and the patrols that were currently out.

Jace looked up as Alec joined them, his blond hair glinting in the overhead lights. “Hey. Any luck?” he asked.

Alec shrugged slightly. “He doesn’t know what they could be doing, but he’ll let us know if he finds anything.”

“That’s it?” Isabelle asked, crossing her arms. She flicked her head in irritation. Her long dark hair flowed around her shoulders like it was alive. The silver snake coiled around her wrist loosened slightly in response.

“I mean, what else is he going to do?” Alec asked, looking between the pair, light and dark, standing side by side. “He’s a High Warlock. It’s not like I could exactly make any demands and expect to get anywhere. And, Downworlders don’t exactly trust Shadowhunters.” He turned slightly and muttered, “For good reason.”

Jace quirked an eyebrow at him and crossed his arms, as well. The pair of them looked at him with expressions that said they were expecting more from his meeting with Magnus Bane than what he’d gotten from him.

“What?”

Isabelle sighed and shook her head. “I guess we just wait and hope for the best, then.”

Alec grit his teeth. “He said he’d contact me if anything turned up in the club. That’s the best we can ask for.”

“I know, Alec. I just don’t like this. Something is going on, and we’ve just been chasing our tails for the last month.” Isabelle’s frustration level grew with the dead ends they’d continuously run into. “Whoever is doing this has drained all of these Mundanes for reasons unknown. Nothing is coming up in the research. No one has any idea why they could want all this Mundane blood.”

Jace nodded next to her but said nothing.

Glancing between his two siblings, Alec rubbed a hand over his forehead. “I know. We need to reach out to the rest of the Downworld leaders. See if any of them have any insight that might help us.”

Another glance passed between Izzy and Jace before they looked at him again. Both had matching skeptical looks on their faces.

“What now?”

Isabelle shrugged and brushed her hair back over her shoulder. “I don’t know, Alec. You tell us. You’ve been different lately…about a lot of things, but you’re definitely different about the Downworlders.”

Alec turned back towards the screen that he was standing in front of and frowned. He hadn’t thought trying to increase communication a little bit during a mystery situation would be seen as being different from how he usually behaved. Had he really been so close-minded in the past that he hadn’t been willing to reach out to people who might know the answer to something he didn’t?

The short answer to that question was probably yes, though he loathed to admit it, even in his own head.

Alec sighed slightly as he glanced at them over his shoulder. He knew exactly what it was that had opened his mind to the Downworld. He’d gotten to know them as people rather than the stereotypes their parents had indoctrinated them with. He was on the verge of falling in love with one of them.

Part of him desperately wanted to clue them into the fact that he was dating a Downworlder and a man, at that. How would they react? Alec thought they’d be happy for him and wouldn’t treat him like the older generation of Nephilim society likely would if they ever found out. There were several excellent reasons why Alec hadn’t let his preferences be known widely. Magnus had been incredibly patient and gracious with him for the last several months since their relationship really started getting serious. He just wondered how long that patience would last.

Sighing again, Alec looked back at his siblings. “I just…” he started, glancing around to ensure no one was too close. Still, he dropped his voice lower before continuing. “I’ve been thinking a lot recently about how we interact with Downworlders. We take so much for granted because it’s how we’re taught as we grow up. It’s not really said outright, but you know most of our people see Downworlders as second-class members of the Shadow World, with Nephilim being at the top. You see that, right?” he asked, concerned because both of them were staring at him with mouths slightly agape.

Izzy recovered first and glanced at Jace before looking back to Alec with a small smile. “We thought it might be something like that,” she said, her tone matching his in volume. “I’m thrilled to hear that, Alec.”

Jace nodded next to her but, again, didn’t add anything to the conversation. His expression was worried, though, and Alec wondered if that meant he agreed with Izzy’s take on the situation.

Alec cleared his throat and glanced around again as another Shadowhunter approached the console next to theirs. “Anyway, we need to figure out what’s going on with these exsanguinated corpses and put a stop to whatever it is. We have our next steps so that we can start there tomorrow,” he said, noting the time. They were nearly due to be done for the shift.

Izzy raised a brow. “You sure you’re feeling all right?” she teased.

Alec rolled his eyes as Izzy and Jace both grinned.

“Well, that works for me, anyway. I have plans this evening,” she said, her smirk turning coy.

“Me, too,” Jace chimed in and hopped off the desk he’d been perched on.

Alec felt like rolling his eyes again. They were a bit predictable sometimes. “Have fun. Be safe. I’ll see you both tomorrow. On time,” he stressed, watching them walk away.

He sighed once more as Izzy waved over her shoulder before they both disappeared down the corridor to the living quarters.

Alec turned back to the screen and saved what he’d been working on before following them. He had his own plans for the evening.

* * *

Magnus woke slowly to the feel of soft lips pressing kisses against his chin and throat. He wondered if he was still sleeping for a brief moment, but he realized that Alexander had arrived. He stretched slightly to give Alexander better access, marveling once again at the idea that he had someone he trusted this much in his life, especially given the short duration of their relationship. There was nothing about the Shadowhunter’s presence that worried him, and his magic and wards had reacted to that by letting Alexander pass without alarm.

Waking up this way was a decidedly unique experience, which was rare for someone over 400 years old to be able to say.

Rare and precious.

“Well, hello to you, darling,” Magnus murmured, his voice husky with sleep and emotion.

Alexander responded with another kiss, this time to his cheek, then immediately followed up with a kiss pressed to his mouth. The Shadowhunter pulled back and smiled down at Magnus.

“Hi,” he said simply, but the look in his hazel eyes as he smiled at Magnus spoke depths that the words didn’t cover.

Magnus thought he saw the echo of his own feelings in that gaze, and he returned the smile. Neither had uttered words of love, yet, both were hesitant to add weight to something that still felt fragile and fleeting. Instead of saying anything further just yet, Magnus reached up and wrapped his arms around Alexander’s shoulders, pulling him back down into a more thorough kiss. Minutes passed before they broke for breath. Their position had shifted slightly, and now Alexander was a comforting weight pressing Magnus into the sofa on which he’d fallen asleep.

“Did the rest of your evening go well?” Magnus asked, running his hand through the hair flopping over Alexander’s temple.

A hopefully positive hum resonated from where Alexander pressed his mouth to Magnus’ throat, face tucked into the space between chin and shoulder. “It was fine,” he said. “Much better now.”

Magnus dropped a kiss on Alexander’s head and let his hands run further down the Shadowhunter’s back, tugging lightly on the black shirt he was still inexplicably wearing. “Maybe we can make it even better,” he whispered suggestively.

Alexander sat back on his knees, straddling Magnus’ thighs and watching Magnus through half-lidded eyes as he dragged the shirt off over his head. For a moment, the Nephilim stayed still, letting Magnus look his fill at the sculpted chest covered in a matting of surprisingly soft hair. Unable to bear the distance, Magnus reached out for him, pulling him back over so that their lips could meet once more.

Between kisses, Alexander slowly started to unbutton the shirt Magnus wore. The Nephilim’s hands dipped beneath the fabric to caress the skin that was revealed with each button. For such small touches, Magnus thought he might be on the verge of combustion. Every inch of his skin felt aflame with desire for the man hovering over him.

At this point in their relationship, they’d managed to try many things together, but it always seemed to come back to this, just the two of them, together, skin to skin as they breathed the other in. Magnus had never felt closer to another person than he did to Alexander, which was something he still wasn’t sure he’d managed to adequately convey to the other man. In his long life, no one had touched his soul the way this man.

And that made all the difference.

Alec shifted, grinding down into Magnus as he pressed forward to deepen their kisses. Magnus dragged his hand down Alec’s side, feeling the contraction of the muscles as Alec’s hips flexed against him. The drag of Alec’s chest hair across his own, the feel of light stubble brushing against his own facial hair, the heat from the body hovering over him; each sensory input shifted Magnus closer to overloading. He gave himself over to the moment, letting it build as he dragged his hand down Alec’s back, dipping beneath the waistband of what he knew would be the ubiquitous black jeans his lover favored.

Magnus urged Alec up and he followed, slowly kissing up the column of Alec’s neck. His hand slipped further down the loose band of Alec’s jeans while the other ran through the soft strands at the back of Alec’s head, gently guiding their mouths back together.

“Bed?” he whispered, eager to get the Nephilim fully spread out beneath him so he could worship properly.

Alec nodded. “Bed.”

* * *

Chapter 2

Loosing an arrow into the last Shax demon creeping up behind Jace, Alec started to let his bow drop as he looked around for any others that were hidden. He, Jace, and Isabel had been on patrol now for a few hours, and this was the first site of demon activity they’d been dispatched to deal with, which turned out to be a relatively simple nest of Shax demons. Plentiful and potentially dangerous, but between the three of them, it was nothing but a matter of minutes before they were all cleared out and sent back to their demonic home plane.

Alec watched as Jace and Izzy quietly teased each other in the alley below his perch a few stories up, making sure that each other was all right and uninjured. The two parabatai had instantly bonded after Jace had come to live with them, Izzy’s gregarious and unapologetic personality breaking through the walls Jace had built up around himself far better than Alec’s reserved nature had been able to do. It probably didn’t help that he was nearly four years older than the pair of them while they were only about six months apart. By the time Jace had joined their family, Alec had already discovered and was desperately hiding his attraction to the same sex.

He and Jace had eventually become great friends – best friends, even – and for a brief moment, Alec had entertained the possibility of asking Jace to be his parabatai, but the right moment had never materialized. And then Jace had asked Isabelle.

To his shame, the bitterness and hurt that he still felt over that welled up at unexpected moments. He loved them both, and he couldn’t begrudge them the bond that so clearly shored up a portion of their own psyches, but Alec was honest enough with himself to admit he was painfully jealous of that bond.

“Alec, doing okay up there?” Jace called.

He and Izzy were standing shoulder to shoulder, looking up in his direction. Watching the two of them fight together or spar with each other was really something to behold. They’d gotten their bond to the point that the synchronicity between them was otherworldly.

Alec nodded. “I’m fine. Nothing got up here,” he called. “Let’s keep moving.”

Jace nodded and glanced at Izzy briefly before turning away to head back out of the alley. Izzy was still looking up at him, but Alec didn’t acknowledge the concern on her face, looking instead for the nearest point to the next roof so that he wouldn’t need to abandon his high ground.

While he was looking, his phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out and looked at the message that had come through. The message from Magnus was brief but clear. They needed to change their destination. Alec glanced back down into the alley below and let out a sharp whistle to catch his sibling’s attention. They trotted back towards where they’d left him on the rooftop, and Alec drew an equilibrium rune before dropping over the edge and landing on the fire escape below with little effort. Moments later, he was next to Jace and Izzy on the ground.

“What is it?” Izzy asked, looking at him with that same concern on her face.

“I just got a message from Ma…High Warlock Bane. We need to get to Pandemonium.”

Izzy quirked an eyebrow, the concern on her face shifting towards curiosity at the way he’d changed names. Jace raised both eyebrows but seemed more interested in the message itself. “Bloodless corpse activity?” he asked.

Alec stared at him for a moment, contemplating that word choice, before nodding his head slightly. It was close enough. “Yeah. Let’s go.” With that, he turned and led the way towards the club, taking the most direct route after drawing his speed rune and taking off at a brisk pace towards the nightclub.

Jace and Izzy started racing each other, and Alec huffed slightly but maintained his steady pace. He was usually faster than them, anyway. Izzy and Jace both pulled to a stop simultaneously, again without seeming to exchange any overt communication. Alec stopped next to them and looked at the entrance to the club. The line of people entering the club moved freely, so it seemed to be one of the lighter nights for attendance. That made sense, given it was a Wednesday. He glanced around and saw a hideous yellow van with graffiti parked off to one side. The passengers of said van appeared to be admiring the exterior. Alec shook his head and nudged Jace and Izzy forward to get them moving.

“Looks clear. Let’s get inside and see if we can find anyone trying to pass blood around,” he murmured to the pair.

His siblings nodded and started forward. The redhead standing next to the van nearly backed into Jace’s path, but Alec reached out and tugged him aside before they could collide. Jace looked at him with raised eyebrows. Alec shook his head and glanced to the side. For a moment, he swore the redhead they’d almost bumped into made eye contact with him. Unless she had the Sight, which was unlikely, that wasn’t possible, so he pushed it from his mind and refocused on the task ahead.

Moments later, they had entered the nightclub. The music and dancing people, a vast number of which were downworlders, packed tightly together made it difficult to spot what they were looking for. Alec’s eyes slowly scanned the room as they moved, trying to spot a demon disguised as a human. He finally spotted Magnus, standing up on his platform and looking out over the crowd, a drink in one hand. Their eyes met, and Magnus looked to his left briefly, towards another VIP area, before looking back over to the bar.

Alec looked in that direction and saw…what appeared to be two exceptionally intellectually challenged Shadowhunters, standing as they were in suits against the bar and making no effort to relax and blend in with the crowd. Alec didn’t recognize them at first, but then one turned his head to say something to the other, and Alec spotted the circular rune inscribed on his neck.

Of course, he recognized the rune, but he hadn’t expected to see it in public. The Shadowhunters were part of the terrorist organization known as the Circle…which had supposedly disintegrated with the death of Valentine Morgenstern nearly twenty years earlier.

What were Circle members doing in a Downworlder club, anyway? Alec wondered.

He glanced over his shoulder at Jace and Izzy. “Go check out that VIP area. I thought I saw something,” he ordered. “I’m going to go have a chat with the Shadowhunters at the bar.”

Jace’s head whipped towards the bar, and he easily spotted the Shadowhunters if his expression was anything to go by. Izzy frowned as she looked between the VIP area and the bar. “Are you sure?” she asked.

Alec raised an eyebrow at both of them, the mantle of his position as Acting Head settling easily into place. Both of his siblings had recognized the stance and nodded before moving towards the VIP area as ordered.

As Alec began weaving his way through the crowd towards the bar, his gaze flickered back to the raised dais that Magnus was usually perched on. He didn’t see the Warlock there and frowned briefly before he spotted him in the crowd, walking through a smoothly parting sea of bodies towards the same destination as Alec.

Magnus reached the Shadowhunters at the bar, and Alec hung back slightly, trying to blend in with the crowd to remain undetected by the Circle members for the moment. He wanted to avoid an altercation if at all possible, given the number of mundanes in the club.

“Circle members aren’t allowed in my club,” Magnus said.

“No worries, warlock. It’s all ancient history,” one of the Shadowhunters said, condescension dripping from his words.

Alec could practically feel Magnus’ hackles rise. “Really? To me, it was like the blink of an eye.”

At some signal Alec couldn’t see, the two Circle members were surrounded by burly bouncers. It looked like they were about to start a fight to escape, and Magnus sighed before snapping his fingers. Instantly, the two were unconscious and being supported by the bouncers.

Magnus turned to Alec. “Mr. Lightwood,” he said, nodding in greeting. “I assume you’ll want to talk with these two…gentlemen?” he asked, the curl of his lip displaying his true thoughts about their nature.

“Indeed. Thank you for your assistance, Mr. Bane. It’s greatly appreciated,” Alec said and couldn’t help the small smile that slipped through. He schooled his face a moment later at the sight of Isabelle and Jace weaving through the crowd toward their location.

“Alec,” Jace said, stopping next to him and looking at Magnus and the situation with the bouncers and Circle members warily. “Looks like you’ve got everything under control,” he said quietly.

Alec quirked an eyebrow at Jace’s tone but chose to ignore it otherwise. He glanced at Izzy to make sure she was uninjured. “Isabelle Lightwood, Jace Wayland, this is the High Warlock of Brooklyn, Magnus Bane. Mr. Bane, my siblings,” Alec said, introducing the two halves of his life. He tuned out for a moment, staring at Magnus while exchanging pleasantries.

While he’d mentally prepared himself for something along these lines, Alec still felt like he was in some surreal dream. Part of him desperately wanted to introduce Magnus as his lover, but he’d never officially come out as gay to his siblings, though he did suspect that it wasn’t a secret at this point. They had no idea he was seeing someone. He also hadn’t discussed it with Magnus yet, and while he thought Magnus would be more than fine with them coming out to his family, Alec wasn’t willing to misstep right now, especially since they were technically on duty.

Clearing his throat, Alec glanced at his siblings. “We need to get these two back to the Institute. I’ll call for transport.”

Magnus smiled and waved a hand. “I’d be happy to expedite the removal of these two from my club if you’d like a portal,” he offered.

Izzy grinned at Magnus. “I would love a portal. Alec?” she asked, looking at him with a sly smirk. Her gaze flicked between Magnus and Alec, and there was a glint of something in her eye that had Alec wondering what she was thinking. “We can take these two back and get them entered into the system while you finish up here.”

Alec stared at her for a moment, then looked back to Magnus. “We would appreciate a portal back to the Institute if it’s not too much trouble,” he said, smiling slightly at the Warlock. “We will all,” Alec continued, glancing at Izzy, “take the portal back to the Institute with these two. Thank you.”

It was apparent Magnus was trying not to laugh at the antics playing out in front of him. “Of course. If you’ll follow me?” he said, turning and striding away without waiting for a response.

Again, the crowd parted before him without effort, leaving the Shadowhunters, bouncers, and prisoners to drift along in his wake. Magnus turned into a corridor and then into an empty room off the hallway. The rest trailed in, and the door swung closed behind them.

“It was lovely to see you again, Alexander. We really must do so again soon,” Magnus said, his natural tendency to flirt coming to the fore.

Alec felt himself blush at the looks Izzy and Jace were sending him, and he knew he was in for some teasing when they were alone. He shot Magnus a glance and smiled slightly, clearing his throat. “It was. Thanks again for your assistance. And the portal,” he said as Magnus swirled his hands around dramatically and set the magic in motion to create the portal. “We really do appreciate it.”

“It’s most assuredly my pleasure,” Magnus murmured, stepping slightly closer to Alec as Izzy and Jace followed the bouncers through the portal.

The room was empty for a moment, and Alec closed his eyes, leaning in closer to Magnus and taking a moment to just breathe him in. Between Alec’s schedule and Magnus’ commitments as High Warlock, they hadn’t seen each other in the last few days, and Alec thought he might be experiencing withdrawal. Magnus brushed his thumb over Alec’s cheek before resting it at the back of his neck. A gentle tug brought their lips together in a brief kiss that Alec longed to deepen.

“Come over soon?” Magnus whispered. “I miss you.”

Alec nodded and leaned in for another chaste kiss. “I miss you, too. If I can get away tonight, I’ll come over…but with the prisoners…” he trailed off, shaking his head slightly.

“I know. I’ll see you soon,” Magnus said, pulling his hand back with another gentle caress. “The others will be waiting for you before they come back through,” he said.

“Yeah, I’m going. See you soon,” he said, then stepped into the portal, thinking clearly of the front lawn of the Institute.

When he stepped out, the bouncers were indeed waiting for him. They wasted no time stepping back through the portal, and it snapped out of existence once the last one was through. Alec stepped forward to where Izzy was waiting with Jace. Their prisoners were collected and carried inside and down to the detention level, where they would be searched and locked up until Alec was ready to question them. Alec sighed, thinking of the report that was in his immediate future.

Izzy nudged him with her elbow as they started walking into the Institute well behind the others. “Took you long enough to get through that portal,” she teased.

“Hmm?” he asked, glancing at her. He intended to play dumb for as long as possible.

“I’ve heard a lot of things about Magnus,” she said. “What did you think of him?”

Alec was a bit at a loss, his thoughts chasing each other. Did she suspect something? “Um…Magnus is…quite…magical.” He cursed himself internally after that slipped out. Where was his brain? How was that helpful?

Grinning at him, Izzy winked. “Mmmhmm, he certainly was magical. Is he who you’ve been seeing, then?” she asked.

Alec felt his stomach drop, and he ground to a halt, staring at her. “What?”

Izzy’s face softened from the teasing smirk she’d had before. “We know you’re seeing someone, Alec. You’re not quite as stealthy as you think, sneaking out of the Institute all the time.”

“But-“Alec started, feeling a stammer building as his heart started pounding. He was in no way prepared for this moment to be sprung on him. It had always been his plan to sit his siblings down and tell them, not for them to ambush him with the knowledge that they had pieced together despite any official acknowledgment from him.

Jace stopped next to them and reached out to drop a hand on Alec’s shoulder. “You know we’re good with whatever makes you happy, Alec. Right?” he asked, looking at Alec with earnestness in his mismatched eyes.

Alec was silent for a moment, struck speechless by the conversation. He glanced between his brother and sister, wondering if they’d spent time talking about this. If they had, just where had they discussed it? His thoughts spiraled from there, imagining them discussing his sexual preferences in the middle of Operations. Alec closed his eyes and focused on breathing, trying not to jump to conclusions.

Finally, Alec opened his eyes and nodded, staring at the Institute. “Of course.” He took a deep breath before meeting their eyes. “And, yes. Magnus and I have been seeing each other for almost six months.”

Izzy’s eyes opened wider in surprise. “Wow, all right. Maybe you are stealthier than we gave you credit for,” she said, glancing at Jace. “We’ve only known for about a month that you were seeing someone.”

Jace squeezed his shoulder before dropping his hand. “Good for you, though, Alec. I’m glad you’ve found someone,” he said, smiling softly.

It may have been reading more into it than Jace intended, but Alec could almost feel the unspoken finally from both of them. It took effort to keep his face neutral, but he managed, pasting on a wan smile and glancing between the two parabatai before him. “Thanks.”

“So, next time we see Magnus, will you introduce us properly?” Izzy asked, wrapping her arm through his and tugging him in the direction of the Institute. Jace took up his usual position at Izzy’s side.

Alec quirked an eyebrow but nodded. “Yes.”

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Izzy and Jace exchange looks…again…but couldn’t find it in himself to care if they found his reluctance to say much concerning. They’d caught him completely off guard. He was entitled to feel more taciturn than usual.

Before they started up the steps, he stopped and turned towards them. “Have you two discussed this in the Institute?” he asked, looking between them.

Another shared look, and then Jace stuck his hands in his pockets.

Alec didn’t need to be parabatai with either of them to know what that meant. He sighed again. “Look, could the two of you just not say anything about this inside? I’d prefer no speculation about my love life, please.”

His two siblings shared another look, and if they didn’t stop doing that soon, Alec would burst. It was seriously grating on his nerves. “Please?” he asked again, more plaintively at their continued silence.

Izzy grimaced slightly. “Alec… I’m pretty sure everyone already suspects.”

Alec could feel his skin crawling at the idea of everyone in the Institute knowing how he felt about relationships. And talking about him behind his back. He staggered back a step, trying to breathe past the knot in his chest. “What?” he asked hoarsely.

Taking a step forward with her hand outstretched, Izzy tried to calm him down. “It’s not a big deal, Alec. No one cares,” she said.

The look on Jace’s face didn’t support what she’d said, and Alec wondered if she’d managed to convince herself that no one cared because of how much she loved Alec. Clearing his throat, Alec evaded her hand and held up both of his own. “Just…please make sure the prisoners get searched and settled correctly, will you? I can’t be here right now.”

He took another few steps back as both Jace and Izzy nodded. “Of course, Alec. We’ll take care of it. Are you okay?” Jace asked, forehead scrunching with his concern.

Alec shook his head. “Not at the moment, no,” he said honestly. “Give me some time.”

Izzy nodded. “If you need anything, we’re here, Alec. Don’t forget that.”

“I know. I’ll be fine. I just…” he trailed off and glanced between them before taking a deep breath and turning on his heel to walk away from the Institute. He needed to do some thinking before he went back inside.

* * *

Chapter 3

Clarissa Fray’s second day of being a legal adult dawned too early.

Light streamed through the window next to her bed, clearly telling her that she’d forgotten to close the curtains the previous night before falling asleep. It wasn’t shocking, of course. Simon had managed to work his magic at Pandemonium, using his fake ID to acquire a few birthday drinks for her and Maureen. He’d done the responsible thing and stayed with the virgin drinks as the driver.

But that meant that Clary had had more alcohol in her system than she had ever had before and was left with the resulting general ick feeling the following morning. And she’d forgotten to close the curtains, so she didn’t even have the benefit of sleeping in.

A knock on the door had Clary trying to bury her head under her pillow with a groan. The door must have opened because the next thing she heard was her mother’s sigh.

“Really, Clary?”

Clary groaned again.

“Up. You can deal with the consequences of acting like an adult…by actually acting like an adult.”

Clary heard the humor in her mom’s voice despite the words, so at least she wasn’t in too much trouble for underage drinking. Clary decided that it was best to try to stay on her mother’s good side for the time being, so she forced herself to roll back over and dislodge the pillow covering the red curls that fell around her shoulders in an absolute mess. She stumbled out of bed, grabbing a hair tie to push the mess back under some semblance of control. The executive decision was made that pajamas were perfectly acceptable this early in the morning because there was no way she was getting changed yet, and Clary was stumbling out the door, eyes half-open and a headache brewing behind the stuffing in the rest of her head.

The smell of coffee was the next thing she was aware of as she stumbled towards the kitchen and slumped into one of the barstools at the counter. Her mother took pity on her and slid a cup of coffee to her moments later.

“Thanks, mom,” Clary muttered as she sipped at the coffee.

“Do I need to lecture you on the perils of underage drinking, Clarissa?” Jocelyn Fray asked, looking at her daughter.

Clary looked up and smiled innocently. “No, mother,” she said, watching as the older Fray tucked a strand of auburn hair behind her ear and raised an eyebrow. “I promise,” she added.

Jocelyn nodded. “No more until you’re 21, understood?”

“If then…” Clary muttered, taking another sip of her drink. The heat was soothing and seemed to be doing something to make a dent against the cotton in her head.

As Clary drank the coffee, her mother pulled out pans and ingredients. She let Clary suffer and medicate in silence, thankfully, and then proved herself the best mother ever when she slid a plate full of Clary’s favorite fluffy pancakes in front of her.

“You are the best, mom,” Clary said, tucking into the pancakes.

Silence greeted her statement, but it took Clary a few minutes of pancakery to notice. She glanced up at her mom and saw her leaning against the opposite counter with a frown on her face and a distant expression in her eyes. Clary was pretty sure it had nothing to do with underage drinking, but the worry was apparently contagious. She pushed the plate of half-eaten pancakes away slightly. “Mom?”

Jocelyn’s head snapped around to look at Clary like she was startled to be in the same room with another person. “Oh, sorry. I was off in my own thoughts.” Jocelyn smiled. “Finish your breakfast, sweetheart.”

“You looked worried,” Clary said, pulling the plate back over to her. “What’s wrong?”

“It’s complicated…”

Clary watched her mom for a few minutes, chewing slowly as she let her brain mull over the situation. “Is this about what you wanted to talk about?” she asked, taking another bite.

Jocelyn sighed and looked at Clary. Something about the expression on her face didn’t sit well with Clary, and she felt that whatever her mother had to say was not going to be pleasant.

Finally, Jocelyn nodded. “Yes. I need to talk to you about who we are.”

Clary raised an eyebrow and tried to keep her attitude in check, but she couldn’t help the comment that tumbled out of her mouth, considering she’d just talked about it with Simon and Maureen the night before. “What, like why we have no relatives?” she asked. “Are we in some kind of, like, witness protection or something?”

Jocelyn’s face lit up slightly at the idea. “That’s actually not a bad way to think about it. We are hiding from someone, yes.”

Nothing else was forthcoming for a few moments as Jocelyn looked at Clary, who looked back at her while she continued eating her pancakes and waiting for whatever was next. The silence continued. “Okay…and then?” she prompted. “Who are we hiding from and why? If we’re not in witness protection, what’s going on?”

“We’re hiding from your father,” Jocelyn said quietly. “And the why is part of what’s complicated.”

Clary’s fork dropped to her plate with a clatter. “My father? You told me he was dead!” Her thoughts flashed to the photo of the man in police uniform on her desk. A man she’d never known. “Is he even a cop?” she asked. “A corrupt cop?”

Jocelyn frowned, obviously confused for a moment, before she shook her head. “That’s not your father, Clary.”

Another pause from Jocelyn had Clary standing up from the barstool and pacing behind her chair. “Could you just please tell me? This starting and stopping is making everything worse!”

Jocelyn closed her eyes and took in a deep breath. “When I was your age, I made a lot of mistakes, Clary. That’s part of why this is so difficult. I wanted to keep you from this, but the protections on you are wearing off, and you need to know.

“I was married to a man named Valentine Morgenstern. He was very charismatic, and, at first, everything he said made sense. It wasn’t until later that I realized how bigoted he was. I’ve been paying for those mistakes ever since.”

Clary’s mouth dropped open. “Am I one of your mistakes?”

Jocelyn’s face turned shocked. “What!? Clary, no, of course not. How could you think that?” she asked, coming around the counter to grip Clary’s shoulders. “You’re one of the few bright spots in my life, and I love you.”

Clary nodded and looked over her mom’s shoulder. “Okay. Why are we hiding from my father?”

Jocelyn stood back and crossed her arms over her chest. “I need to give you a bit more background information first.” She took a deep breath. “We are not human.”

This conversation was going entirely off the rails for Clary, and she was honestly a bit concerned about her mother’s mental state. “Are you okay, mom?”

A knock at the door interrupted what Jocelyn might have said next, and she looked relieved as she hurried away to answer it. “Luke! Thank goodness you’re here!”

Clary watched as Luke drew Jocelyn into a hug, pressing a kiss to her cheek as he went. “Did you tell her yet?” he asked.

“You know whatever this is, too?” Clary asked, interrupting before Jocelyn could say anything.

Luke glanced over at her as he drew back from the hug he’d wrapped Jocelyn in. He left an arm draped over her shoulders, pulling her into his side as they walked back into the room. “So you started telling her?” He looked down at Jocelyn.

“I’m making a total mess of it,” Jocelyn admitted, dropping her head on Luke’s shoulder.

Clary looked back and forth between them, feeling the frustration mounting with each delay of the revelation of whatever the secret was. “Would one of you please just tell me what is going on? Mom said we’re not human, Luke…” she said, crossing her arms and stomping a foot slightly. Clary grimaced slightly, recognizing that she was devolving back into her early teenager state.

Luke quirked an eyebrow at her and looked at Jocelyn briefly before returning his warm gaze to Clary. “Well, we’re not,” he said.

And then his eyes flashed emerald green for a moment.

Clary’s mouth dropped open, and she flailed a little. “What the hell, Luke!”

While she was trying not to hyperventilate and also trying to remember that Luke was as good as a dad to her and she trusted him, Jocelyn dug an elbow into Luke’s side, causing him to grunt slightly. “Did you really need to do that?” she asked, pulling away and moving over to Clary’s side.

“Mom, please tell me what is going on,” Clary begged.

“You know the heirloom I gave you last night?” Jocelyn asked, guiding Clary back to her seat at the counter.

“The paperweight?”

Jocelyn sighed. “It’s not a paperweight. It’s called a stele, and it’s part of our heritage.” She perched on the chair next to Clary, keeping a hand on her shoulder. “We’re something called Nephilim. I was a Shadowhunter before you were born.”

Clary frowned. “What does that mean? Are my eyes going to flash like Luke’s?”

Luke moved closer, standing next to Jocelyn. “Nephilim are half-human, half-angel. You have the blood of the Angel Raziel running through you, Clary. It gives you the ability to bear Angelic runes. And, no. Your eyes aren’t going to flash like mine. I was born Nephilim, but I became a werewolf before you were born.”

Clary sat back and listened. Her mind was blown entirely as the depth of her mother’s lies became apparent.

* * *

The door slammed behind her, but Clary didn’t care as she ran down the stairs, still in her pajamas. She’d shoved her feet into shoes and grabbed a jacket before running out of the house, but otherwise, she had nothing on her. Furious tears were streaming down her face as she took the shortcut to Simon’s house. It was good that she had taken this path so many times that it was second nature and usually devoid of any other people because she wasn’t paying any attention.

Clary made it to Simon’s house without issue and wiped at her face with her sleeve as she reached up to knock on the door. It opened before she could, and Simon was there, frowning at her in concern.

“Clary! Your mom called me. What’s wrong?” he asked, pulling her into the house and into his arms.

She buried her face in his shoulder, trying again to get her angry tears to stop. This was so dumb. She couldn’t believe she was still crying. “Oh, nothing,” she said, then hiccuped. “I just found out my mom’s been lying to me my entire life.” Another hiccup had her bursting into fresh tears.

Simon’s arms tightened around her. “No way! She finally admitted you are in witness protection?” he asked, incredulity lacing his words.

A laugh was startled from Clary, accompanied by another hiccup, of course, and she remembered yet again why Simon was her best friend. “That’s what I thought,” she said, sniffling as she pulled back and scrubbed at her eyes with her sleeve again.

Simon made a face and started towing her towards the kitchen. He grabbed a clean hand towel and stuck it under the faucet before handing it over. Clary scrubbed at her face for a moment, letting the cool dampness help her regain some of the shreds of her composure. When she pulled the towel away, Simon stood in front of her with water and a wad of tissues. She set the towel down on the counter and took the tissues, blowing her nose and trying to mop up the rest of the snot on her face before she accepted the water.

“Simon, you’re my favorite. Thank you for being my friend,” she said. “You’re the only person in my life that hasn’t lied to me.”

A strange look crossed Simon’s face before he smiled at her and pulled her back into a hug. “You’re my best friend, and I don’t ever want to hurt you,” he said quietly. “Or our friendship. It means everything to me.”

She hugged him back and just stayed there for a few moments as she finished calming down. Simon was still looking at her with a gently concerned expression when she pulled back.

“Want to tell me what happened?” he asked.

Clary nodded. “Yeah. Can we go to your room? It’s kind of a lot.”

“Sure. Mom and Becky are going to be out the rest of the day. Let me grab some drinks, and we can camp out.”

The rest of the day was spent with Clary filling Simon in on everything her mother and Luke had told her. She honestly didn’t care that she wasn’t supposed to tell anyone about this. Simon wasn’t just anyone – of course, she would tell him. It was stupid of her mother to even think otherwise. At first, Simon had as much difficulty accepting what Clary was telling him as she had had, but he still believed her in the end.

A knock on the door much later in the day interrupted the movie they were watching, and Simon opened the door to Luke. His eyes widened comically, and he stepped back to let the Werewolf into the house. “Hi, Luke.”

From her spot next to Simon, Clary looked at Luke with what she was sure was a sullen expression on her face. She crossed her arms over her chest and just waited for him to say whatever he came to say.

“Clary. You need to come home,” he said, giving her his best “dad” face, one that she’d seen often enough to know he was earnest about what he was saying.

Clary tipped her chin back slightly and clenched her jaw briefly before saying, “I’m an adult now. I don’t have to do anything I don’t want to.”

Luke closed his eyes for a moment, and Clary was sure she saw a muscle twitch in his jaw. “I understand that, but you need to come home and talk to your mom about everything,” he said, glancing at Simon and obviously understanding that he had already been informed of the Shadow World. “And, you, don’t say a word, understood? It could put your mother and sister in danger. You’re already in enough danger, as it is.”

Simon nodded quickly. “Yup, understood. My lips are zipped.”

Shaking his head, he looked back to Clary. “Will you come back with me?” he asked. “Your mom wants to take you to see if we can get your memories restored.”

Clary’s shoulders slumped. She was interested in getting her memories back, but… “Luke, I just feel so betrayed. Both of you kept this from me. How do I know what to trust? I mean, there’s this whole other world that I know nothing about. I had a right to grow up knowing about all of this, didn’t I? What if I can’t figure out what I want to be other than an artist because I’m supposed to be a Shadowhunter?”

Luke grimaced slightly. “I understand what you’re saying, Clary, but your mom did what she thought was best at the time. You have to see that she was trying to keep you safe. If you’d known about the Shadow World when you were younger, you could have exposed both of you to the Circle without knowing.”

He paused and looked at her imploringly. “She’s just a mom trying to keep her daughter safe. Can you try to understand that, Clary?” he asked.

Clary looked away for a moment before she slowly nodded her head. “I’ll try. I can’t forgive her yet. This is still too new, and there’s so much I don’t know.”

“I know. Just try, okay?”

Sighing, she nodded again. “I will. Is there really a way to get the memories back?”

Luke shrugged. “Maybe. We have to go see a Warlock about it.”

Clary’s eyes widened, and she glanced at Simon to see him still staring at Luke with the same wide-eyed expression he’d had when he opened the door. “Werewolves, and Angels, and Warlocks…oh my,” he breathed.

Clary rolled her eyes and giggled. “It’s a lot, isn’t it?”

Simon nodded. “Oh, yeah.” He looked at her and opened his arms for a hug. “I’ll talk to you later?”

“Yes, definitely. I’ll call you when I find out about the whole memory thing.”

They finished saying goodbye, and Luke and Clary headed down the steps towards Luke’s SUV parked at the curb. After climbing in and buckling their seatbelts, Clary looked at Luke. “Did you agree with her keeping this from me?” she asked.

Luke grimaced again and looked away for a moment. “At first, when you were little? Maybe. I didn’t agree with having your memories taken. As you got older, I thought you needed to know. But your mom has always had a lot to deal with,” he said, sighing. “There’s a lot she, we, both feel guilty over from before with Valentine.”

He closed his eyes for a moment. “There are things I regret doing, Clary, that I will never feel like I’ve atoned for, no matter how many years or how many lives I save by being with the police.”

Clary stared at him, seeing another layer to the whole situation appear before her eyes. Her father was apparently some kind of megalomaniac bent on destroying most of the Shadow World. Her mother and the closest thing she had to a dad had been part of the mess before they’d finally opened their eyes to Valentine’s plans’ evil. And she was just a kid with no idea about any of it.

“Thanks, Luke,” she said, reaching out to grip his arm for a moment. “Thank you for being here for my mom and me.”

He smiled at her, a bit of relief on his face. “Always, Clary. No matter what happens, I’ll always be here for you.”

* * *

Chapter 4

Alec scrubbed a hand over his face as he looked up at Magnus’ building. It felt like he’d been going non-stop since the other night when they’d encountered and apprehended the Circle members in Pandemonium. It had been one thing after another. During the interrogation of the Circle members, they’d learned that Valentine Morgenstern, a man they’d thought dead for nearly twenty years, was actually still alive and growing his organization. How he’d managed to do so with no one the wiser was still a mystery that had yet to be solved.

The call he’d gotten several hours ago had only added to the mystery and his mind was spinning with the potential ramifications. Morgenstern’s wife, Jocelyn, had appeared at Magnus’ loft with a daughter in tow. Jocelyn was another that had been thought long dead. To find out that she was far from dead and had Valentine’s daughter was a shock, to say the least. The fallout from this situation was likely going to be immense. And it was all falling right into his lap as the Acting Head of the New York Institute.

Honestly, better for him to deal with it than his parents, thank you very much.

Alec entered the building with a final sigh and jogged up the stairs to Magnus’ floor. As usual, the door swung open at his approach, the wards recognizing him. When he entered the loft, Magnus was standing just inside the door, out of the view of the sitting area where a group of four people sat. Magnus reached out to him, and Alec responded, immediately going to him and getting pulled into a quick kiss.

“Thank you for coming, darling.”

“Magnus, of course.” Alec glanced towards the group in the sitting room. “I’d rather do this here, anyway, than drag it all through the Institute without having a handle on the situation and a plan for dealing with the Clave.”

Magnus nodded and let his hand slip around Alec to the small of his back. They walked together towards the sitting area, and Alec noticed the only man in the group was staring at them intently. There was something preternatural about his gaze, and Alec wondered if he was a Werewolf from the intensity of the expression on his face and the way he was essentially hovering over the two redheads.

“My dears, this is Alexander Lightwood, Acting Head of the New York Institute.”

The man stood straighter, if that was possible, and his expression sharpened into a threatening glare. One of the redheads, a middle-aged woman, jumped up from her seat, the expression on her face both angry and afraid. “A Lightwood? Magnus, what..”

Magnus held both hands out in front of him in a placating gesture. “Peace. I wouldn’t have asked him to join us if I wasn’t sure he could be trusted,” Magnus said firmly. He held a hand out to Alec and met his eyes, quirking one eyebrow in question. Alec nodded. “Alexander is my partner.”

The older woman’s mouth dropped open slightly, and she looked between them, expression startled. Alec grimaced. A gay Shadowhunter shouldn’t be that big a deal, yet it was. “Oh.”

Magnus continued, ignoring how the woman was still gaping at the two of them. “Alexander, this is Jocelyn Fairchild; her daughter, Clarissa; Lucian Garroway, once known as Greymark; and my old friend, Dorothea,” he introduced, gesturing towards each person in turn as he reeled off their names.

Alec raised an eyebrow at the reaction, but his expression remained stoic otherwise. This was just a taste of what he could expect if and when he finally came out to the rest of the Nephilim world. Here was an opportunity to get used to it and fortify his mental reserves to withstand the incredulity and, potentially, outright disgust. He nodded in greeting to the group.

“At the risk of understatement,” Alec began, “we find ourselves in a very delicate situation.”

Magnus moved further into the room, heading for his drink cart and beginning to prepare something. Without waiting for an invitation – because, really, he was here more than he was at the Institute whenever possible – Alec sat on the unoccupied loveseat and looked at Jocelyn Fairchild. The woman had aged well. The lines on her face spoke more to smiles than frowns, and Alec wondered what her life had been like, raising a child as a mundane in the mundane world.

What would it be like to be free of the restrictions of Nephilim society?

Alec pushed the stray thought away to think on later. It wasn’t relevant to the current situation…at least, it wasn’t relevant at the moment. He leaned forward, bracing his elbows on his knees. Magnus appeared at his side, offering him a drink, and Alec smiled softly up at him in thanks as he accepted it. Looking back to the other group, Alec noted that they all seemed somewhat speechless still.

From what he understood of mundane society, especially in New York, they were much freer and more open with their love. It wasn’t unusual to see two men or two women obviously together in public. For the most part, no one seemed to pay them any more attention than any other couple engaging in public displays of affection. Why were they so thrown by the possibility of a Nephilim and a Warlock?

Again, Alec tried to get his mind recentered on the current situation. He looked at Jocelyn, still waiting for one of them to say something. He quirked an eyebrow at her, prompting her to engage with him in conversation.

Finally, she shook her head and glanced over at the Werewolf. “That is definitely an understatement.” Jocelyn cleared her throat. “But our circumstances are something that I have to deal with to keep Clary safe. I’ve managed this long,” she reached over to rest a hand on the Werewolf’s arm. “With Luke and Dot’s help, we’ve been able to remain hidden from Valentine and the Circle for the last eighteen years. From what I hear, though, it sounds like Valentine is ready to make his next move.”

“And what is that?” Alec asked with a frown. “And why now? Why did he wait 18 years to do something?”

Jocelyn shook her head. “I can’t answer any of those questions. The last part of his plans that I was aware of involved using the Cup to create an army of Shadowhunters that would follow his orders and target Downworlders in addition to demons.” She frowned and looked away for a moment. “That was the last straw, and when I finally got my head out of my ass and realized just what a monster I was married to.”

Alec looked at her for a moment, then slowly nodded. He truly didn’t understand how it took her so long to realize that Valentine Morgenstern was a dangerous monster, but that was another thing to contemplate later.

“Do you still have the Cup?” he asked, trying to keep the hope out of his voice. If they could at least secure the one thing that let them make more Shadowhunters, perhaps they would be able to at least partially replenish their ranks. As it was, the current crop of Shadowhunters-in-Training was the youngest group they’d ever had, including his little brother, Max.

It made him deeply uncomfortable to think that they had children as young as ten years old being sent out to fight. The Uprising when Alec had been a baby had decimated the Shadowhunter’s ranks, and they still hadn’t recovered because of the missing Mortal Cup. The only way to create new Shadowhunters was through natural reproduction.

Jocelyn stared at him for a long moment as if deciding whether or not to tell him the truth. Finally, she nodded once. “Yes, I have it, and it’s safe.”

Alec closed his eyes for a moment and felt his shoulders sag in relief. “I’m so glad to hear that,” he said, looking back up. “Without it, the Clave started condensing the training window. We get our first runes at ten, now.”

Jocelyn and Luke both gasped at that statement. “Ten?” she breathed. “That’s far too young!” Her gaze shifted to Clary, and Alec wondered if she was thinking about all the children she’d caused to have abbreviated childhoods. From the expressions on Clary’s, Dot’s, and Magnus’ faces, they obviously did not understand the implications of getting your first rune at such a young age.

Alec suspected she was mostly glad that Clary hadn’t been exposed to the current Shadowhunter lifestyle. He honestly didn’t have a high opinion of her selflessness when it came to anyone other than her daughter. Even then, he suspected her choice to keep Clary away from the Shadow World was more to her own benefit than anything else.

“Yes. It is,” he said, meeting her gaze with all of the seriousness he felt on the topic. He had to restrain himself from flinging questions at her in a vain effort to figure out why she’d been so selfish to keep the Cup away from the Clave for so very long. He took a deep breath, banishing the thoughts for the moment and keeping himself focused on negotiating the Cup’s return. “With the Cup, I believe we can negotiate your return with the Clave and protect you from most of the consequences of your actions.”

As soon as the words were out of his mouth, Alec watched anger flare in Jocelyn’s eyes. “Who said anything about returning, either myself or the Cup?” she asked vehemently.

Alec saw Clary startle slightly from the corner of his eye, surprised by the vehemence in Jocelyn’s voice. There was a grimace on Luke’s face as he looked away, and Alec wondered how many times he’d had the same conversation with Jocelyn.

Alec set his glass down on the coffee table and regarded Jocelyn dispassionately. “Are you so selfish that you would put your daughter at risk? There were Circle members at Pandemonium last night. And if I’m not mistaken, your daughter was there, too. How long before Valentine finds you and the Cup? Would you really give him all the tools he needs to see to the destruction of both the Downworld and Nephilim society?”

The fury on Jocelyn’s face was genuinely startling. “You know nothing of what I would or wouldn’t do to protect my daughter, Lightwood,” she spat. “Why should I trust the Clave to protect her? They didn’t manage to protect the Cup, did they?”

Alec calmly raised an eyebrow at her. “That was nearly twenty years ago. The last decade has seen a growing progressive movement throughout our society. We’re trying to make things better between Nephilim and the Downworlders.”

“And how’s that going for you?” Jocelyn asked, sneering.

“That’s a fair question,” Alec replied, going for straightforward honesty. “It’s been a bit slow. Mostly due to older generations holding onto their prejudices and bigotry,” he shot back. “If you truly have changed your way of thinking about the Downworlders, you would be able to help us. There’s still a fairly large population of people who followed Valentine or at least sympathized with him holding things back. If you return, you might be able to help sway those people. Just returning the Cup will bring tremendous favor throughout our society.”

Alec stopped for a moment and stared hard at Jocelyn. “We’re fighting a losing battle, Jocelyn. We need more Shadowhunters. The Cup will help with that.”

“Not in the short term,” Luke broke in.

“No, not in the short term,” Alec agreed. “Which is why I’m working on an alliance between Shadowhunters and the Downworlders. The Shadow World belongs to all of us. We should all work together to keep it safe.”

Silence greeted his response. Alec noticed that Clary was looking between the four of them with a slightly overwhelmed expression on her face. There was so much she didn’t know. Clearing his throat, Alec brought the conversation back to the main point.

“But that’s not for today. Today, I want to help bring you and Clary back to your people.” Alec paused, looking at Jocelyn. Her expression had lost the initial flare of anger that was stereotypically associated with red-haired people, and she appeared thoughtfully worried. “Don’t you want her to have the chance to learn her heritage?” he asked, truly curious if Jocelyn had abandoned her birth people as much as it seemed.

Jocelyn didn’t answer immediately, instead looking at her daughter, who returned the gaze, expression open. “Mom…I want to know where we come from. I feel like I need to know,” Clary said. She was so earnest.

Alec couldn’t ever remember actually being that young.

He recognized that he was only around five years older than Clary, but it felt like he’d been an adult since he took his first rune at ten. His people certainly treated him as an adult, as they did to all of his peers, but Alec was the heir to a very old family, and his parents were the heads of the New York Institute. He’d had the weight of expectations on his shoulders since he could walk, and it wasn’t likely to get any easier. For a moment, part of him envied Clary for being able to grow up away from the Shadow World and all it entailed, but then he glanced at Magnus and knew that everything he’d lived throughout his life had brought him to this point, to this relationship, with the Warlock. If it meant losing the chance to have Magnus in his life, he wouldn’t change a single thing.

Jocelyn had continued to stare at her daughter, expression conflicted, for a long, silent moment. She finally nodded once and turned to look at Alec. Grimacing slightly, she asked, “How do you recommend we do this, then?”

Relief made Alec’s shoulders drop for just a moment. “Thank you,” he breathed. “As for the best way to get this started, I think it would be best for us to head back to the Institute, and I’ll contact the Clave. I’ll let them know that you made contact and that you’d like to negotiate the terms of your return in exchange for the Cup.” He glanced over at Clary. “Your daughter will be treated just like any other Nephilim raised in the mundane world. She’ll be offered the chance to join us and then go through the accelerated training program in Alicante to get her up to speed on the Shadow World and what it means to be a Shadowhunter. At the end of the training, Clary, you’ll be offered the chance to fully join Nephilim society and take your first rune. At that point, you’ll be assigned to an Institute for field training.”

Alec looked back to Jocelyn. “There will be consequences for your actions with Valentine, though. You need to prepare yourself for that,” he said. “The Uprising hurt our people greatly, and we are still not recovered from it.”

Jocelyn nodded, and a flicker of fear crossed her face. “Do you…Do you think I’ll be deruned?” she asked.

“I don’t so, no, but I can’t guarantee that. They haven’t deruned any other of Valentine’s followers that turned themselves in willingly and testified under the Soul Sword regarding their intentions. As long as you truly do not follow Valentine’s beliefs any longer,” Alec said, glancing between Dot and Luke briefly,” and it doesn’t look like you do, it should be fine. You might be restricted to an Institute or Alicante, though. Because you’re returning the Cup, my guess is they will agree to be very lenient.”

Looking somewhat reassured, Jocelyn nodded. “All right.”

“Are you sure about this, Jocelyn?” Luke said, exchanging a glance with Jocelyn. It was clear he didn’t fully trust the situation.

Jocelyn quirked a brow at him. “You’ve been telling me I need to do something like this for years, and, now that I’ve finally decided to actually do it, you’re changing your mind?” she asked, a slight smile on her face.

Luke huffed a breath in amusement. “Fair. And, no, I’m not changing my mind. I just…” He shook his head in frustration. “I’m just worried.”

Smiling slightly, Jocelyn reached out a hand to grip his. “I know. I am, too,” she said with a glance towards Clary. “But I think you’re right. I need to do this, and this is the best way.”

“Would you like to go straight to the Institute, or do you want to go back to your place first to pack some overnight bags? I’m not sure how long this will take before you can go back to your home.”

“I think we should head to the Institute now,” Jocelyn decided. “I’m not taking the Cup to them without negotiating, first.”

Alec nodded. “Then, that’s what we’ll do.” He glanced over at Magnus and found himself being observed. He returned the slight smile, then glanced back at the rest of the room’s occupants. “If you’ll excuse us for a minute, I need to talk to my boyfriend before we leave.” With that, he wrapped his hand around Magnus’ and stood, tugging the Warlock up with him and back towards the bedroom.

The door closed quietly behind them as they entered a room that Alec sometimes felt like he spent more time in than his own at the Institute these days. He pressed Magnus back against the closed door and leaned in for a long, slow kiss. He’d been dying to do this since he arrived, and he definitely wasn’t leaving the loft without a few minutes of solitude with Magnus.

Finally, after several minutes, he pulled back. Alec caressed Magnus’ face briefly. “I wish I could come back tonight, but if this goes the way I think it will, the next few days are going to be very busy.”

Magnus nodded and smiled up at him, still leaning back against the door and looking delightedly flushed from their impromptu make-out session. “I understand. I feel like I haven’t had you to myself in far too long, though, so consider this me lodging a formal complaint,” he teased, a pouty smirk on his face.

Alec chuckled. “Noted. Once they’re taken care of, I’ll be here.” He paused and glanced away briefly. “I’ve missed you,” he admitted.

Talking about feelings was always hard for him, perhaps especially with Magnus. They’d been together for months, and Alec still hadn’t felt like he could say those three little words. He knew the truth of the, though, deep into the core of his being.

Magnus was the love of his life. And, through some quirk of biology, Nephilim only loved once. He wasn’t sure how widely that was known by the remainder of the Shadow World, though, but he didn’t want to pressure Magnus to return his feelings. After all, Magnus had had many loves before Alec, and he would have many loves after Alec. He would never wish for Magnus to be alone, but the idea of being just one fading memory among so many others crept up on him sometimes, causing a jolt of anguish in his gut. Compartmentalizing that feeling was the work of a moment, but it was still there, lingering in the background and waiting to rear its head at the least opportune time.

So, Alec didn’t commit his emotions to spoken words. He tried to show Magnus how much he was loved, but whether Alec was successful was another question. At some point, Alec would give voice to those words and find out where he truly stood with Magnus. Was he just the passing fling of a moment? Or something more? He was mostly sure it was the latter, but the doubt persisted and made it difficult to chance losing what they currently had on a dream.

Clearing his mind of those thoughts, he leaned in for another few minutes of kissing. Alec would take advantage of whatever time he had with Magnus, both now and for however long their relationship lasted.

* * *

The Institute loomed ahead of the small group of Nephilim as they stepped out of the portal that Magnus had made for them. Alec looked at the two women with him. Clary looked a little wobbly, which wasn’t surprising given that she’d just gone through a portal for the first time. Jocelyn was staring at the Institute, warm light spilling from the windows, with something like longing on her face.

“Ready?” he asked quietly.

The mother and daughter exchanged a look, then nodded at him. Nodding back, he turned and walked across the lawn to the entrance of the Institute. It wasn’t a long walk, but Alec was very conscious of the fact that he had two people with him and that he was about to stir up something of a hornet’s nest within the Clave. This was definitely going to be interesting.

Steeling himself, he pushed open the door and gestured for the two to enter. He walked in after, making sure the door was closed, before leading the way into the Operations Center. Jace and Izzy were talking over one of the displays showing demonic activity in New York. They both looked up at his approach, eyes immediately darting to Jocelyn and Clary. The younger Fairchild was looking around with a bit of awe in her expression. It was rather impressive if Alec tried to look at it from an outsider’s perspective. All of the technology and Shadowhunters working did present an intense display.

“Alec,” Izzy said, smiling at him with a sardonic lilt to her expression. “You’ve brought mundanes into the Institute?” she asked, keeping her voice quiet.

Alec glanced at the women with him and then looked back to Izzy and Jace. “No. This is Jocelyn Fairchild and her daughter Clarissa.” Their eyes widened slightly in shock. Alec ignored it. “Jocelyn, Clary, this is my sister, Isabelle Lightwood, and her parabatai, Jace Wayland.”

At the introduction, a slight frown crossed Jocelyn’s face, and Alec wondered what had caused the reaction. She shook it off and reached out to accept the handshakes from Jace and Izzy, Clary following her example.

Looking back to his siblings, Alec said, “I have to contact the Clave. Would you keep them entertained for a bit? Clary knows nothing of our people, so you could give her a bit of an overview of what we do here,” he suggested.

Izzy and Jace exchanged a brief glance, the silent communication nearly instantaneous before they were both smiling at the pair of women. “Of course. We’ll show you around while Alec does his thing,” Jace said, smiling at Clary.

Alec hesitated for a moment. He trusted his siblings, of course, but this was such an unusual situation, and he’d noticed that Jace seemed a bit fixated on Clary. They were about the same age, he realized. And Clary was aesthetically pleasing. He had no idea if she was Jace’s type or not, but it didn’t really matter at that particular moment.

He nodded at the group. “Right. I’ll be in the office,” he said and headed towards the Head’s office that he used whenever his parents left him in charge.

* * *

Chapter 5

“Alexander Gideon Lightwood!”

Alec’s head shot up as the door swung open, and his mother’s voice cut through the peace he’d been trying to soak up as he worked on paperwork. His initial call to the Clave had gone better than he’d expected, but it was still a tense situation. They’d decided to send an envoy to negotiate with Jocelyn on their behalf.

His heart sank as he wondered if they’d chosen his mother for some unknowable reason.

“Mother,” he said, standing smoothly from behind the desk and stepping around it towards the woman who’d given birth to him. “I wasn’t expecting you back yet.”

Maryse Lightwood closed the door behind her with a quiet snap, then walked across the room to stand before her eldest son. She crossed her arms and stared up at him. Despite the difference in their height, Alec felt all of 10 years old again as she gave him her most unimpressed look.

“That is because I did not tell you,” she ground out. She was definitely annoyed at him over something.

“I see. May I ask why?”

Maryse looked at him, her expression unchanged. “I have something important to discuss with you, but you’ve complicated things with the return of the Morgenstern woman.”

“She’s going by Fairchild. Well, Fray, actually,” Alec corrected and cursed himself for the nerves he let show in front of his mother. He was usually much better about that, but he’d too recently had his relationship with the High Warlock of Brooklyn exposed to people in unplanned situations. There was no telling when someone would let something slip, and the cat would be out of the bag.

“I’m not here to discuss her. Sit down,” Maryse said, gesturing to the small seating area off to one side.

Alec felt a tremor of unease as he complied, settling into one of the chairs near the sofa. His mother wasn’t usually concerned with his comfort when she had orders. He had a feeling he wasn’t going to like whatever it was she’d come to say.

“What is it?” he asked when the silence stretched for a long moment.

Maryse straightened her shoulders, and her expression went entirely neutral as she looked at him. “Your father and I have arranged your marriage to Aline Penhallow.”

For a moment, Alec wasn’t sure he’d heard her correctly. Surely she hadn’t just dropped in to tell him that she was marrying him off without even a by-your-leave. He cleared his throat and tried to wipe what he could tell was a startled expression from his face. “Pardon?” he asked, hoping that he’d misheard her.

The unimpressed face was back. Maryse raised an eyebrow. “You need to be married, Alec. You’re twenty-three,” she said, exasperation tinting her voice slightly. “You’ve shown no interest in anyone, in particular, so your father and I decided it was time to see you settled. Aline Penhallow is an excellent match for you. Her family has run the Beijing Institute for centuries, so she’s well-versed in what’s required of the Head of an Institute.”

“But…but won’t they want her to take over Beijing eventually?” Alec asked and almost hit himself for the irrelevant question.

“No, one of her cousins on her mother’s side is next in line, which will return the family name to the Institute leadership,” she said.

“I can’t marry her,” Alec said quietly.

“You can and you will,” Maryse said firmly. “It’s all arranged. The wedding will take place in two weeks. She’ll be arriving late next week.” His mother paused and looked at him imploringly for a moment. “Our family needs this, Alec. Marrying a Penhallow will bring honor to our family and ensure that you are named Head of the Institute after us.”

For the first time that he could remember, Alec was genuinely speechless. There were so many things wrong with what she was saying. His mother wanted him to marry a woman that he didn’t know. Scratch that. His mother wanted him to marry a woman. This was his punishment for hiding his relationship with Magnus, he decided. Well, he wasn’t going to do it. There was no way he could marry a woman when there was no possibility of any sort of attraction, not to mention how he felt about Magnus. He would just have to tell Maryse that marrying a woman was off the table.

“Mother,” he began. “I will not marry Aline Penhallow. Or any other woman you try to throw at me, for that matter,” he said. “I —.”

“You will do as you’re told,” Maryse said, cutting him off. “If you don’t marry her…” She paused for a moment as if debating what she was about to say, but then she straightened her shoulders, and her face hardened into the stern mask she’d always worn when issuing orders to her children. “If you do not marry her in two weeks, you will no longer call yourself a Lightwood.”

Something like a gong sounded in Alec’s head at her pronouncement. They were willing to disown him if he didn’t marry Aline Penhallow? Was he truly worth nothing more to them than advancing their family name? Alec could feel himself going numb inside as he avoided thinking about what she was saying and the more profound implications.

When he said nothing for several minutes, just stared at her, Maryse must have taken that for his agreement, and she stood. “Good. I’m glad you will do your duty, Alec. I’ll begin the preparations for the ceremony.” She reached out a hand and squeezed his shoulder once. “We’ll discuss options for the ceremony later. This will be a good thing, Alec; you’ll see.”

With that, she swept from the room, leaving behind a raging storm within Alec’s stoic form, still seated and staring into the distance. He had no idea how to deal with the maelstrom of his thoughts, and he wanted nothing more at that moment than to run away back to the loft and Magnus.

But that wasn’t an option at the moment.

He had no idea how long he’d been sitting there, carefully not thinking about anything, when there was another knock on the office door. Alec stood abruptly and reached out to grab the chair as the world tilted around him. He cleared his throat and tried to pull himself to some semblance of order as whoever was waiting knocked again.

“Come in,” he called, still holding onto the chair.

The door opened to reveal Andrew Underhill escorting a blonde woman, her hair wrapped in a tight braid around her head. Alec felt an instant flash of relief at the sight of her. “Sir, the Envoy from the Clave has arrived,” Underhill said, stepping back to allow the woman to enter the office.

“Lydia,” he said, scrubbing a hand across his face in a moment of weakness as she walked further into the room.

Lydia Branwell tilted her head, looking at him with concern, as she approached the office’s small cluster of comfortable seats. “Are you all right, Alec?” she asked, frowning.

Alec chuckled mirthlessly. “I have no idea. I’m trying not to think about it right now.” He shook his head. “But you’re not here about my personal situation. You’re here on behalf of the Clave to talk to Jocelyn Fairchild.” He gestured at the chair next to his, inviting her to sit.

She did so with a smile and a nod. “Indeed. I’ve been told she’d like to barter the Mortal Cup in exchange for a reduced punishment for her actions with Valentine Morgenstern.”

Resuming the seat he’d only just left, Alec nodded in agreement. “Yes. She’s got the Cup hidden somewhere safe. I don’t know how easy it would be to find it without her cooperation.”

Lydia quirked an eyebrow. “Agreed. The Clave agrees, as well, actually.” She cleared her throat and folded her hands in her lap. “The prisoners you collected were questioned with the Soul Sword. It appears that Valentine Morgenstern is actually still alive and conducting more of his…experiments. That’s what they were collecting the blood for,” she said.

Sighing, Alec leaned back. “If he’s still alive, why has he waited so long to make any moves? It doesn’t make sense.”

“As far as we can ascertain, he’s been making plans, experimenting, and luring like-minded Shadowhunters to his cause.” Lydia paused, then, her face going grave. “He’s planning another Uprising, Alec.”

“We barely have the people we need to keep the demon incursions under control!” Alec said, feeling all of the pressure around him beginning to mount. “How are we supposed to fight off another Uprising at the same time?”

He shook his head and launched himself out of the chair so he could pace around the office for a moment to let some of the adrenaline-fueled energy bleed off. He finally paused after a few moments, realizing this was an opportunity but wary of playing his hand too soon. “We can’t. You and I both know that. The Clave must know it, too,” he said.

“They do,” she agreed. “Which is perhaps one of the only reasons they’re open to Jocelyn’s request. That, and we’ll acquire two additional Shadowhunters out of the deal.”

Alec scoffed. “One untrained, the other potentially very out of practice if she’s been living solely as a mundane for nearly twenty years.”

Lydia nodded. “Yes, exactly. But we’ll also be able to start offering Ascension to select mundanes again, as well. And they’re going to offer former Circle members who’ve abandoned Valentine the chance to be full members of society again. And their families. We’ll also be contacting all of the Nephilim that have left and asking for their help.”

“There’s another option they probably haven’t considered,” Alec began, knowing Lydia was like-minded about his stance towards Downworlders. She and Alec had initially met during a meeting of progressive Nephilim, where they were both active politically. It wasn’t broadcast, but among their generation, it was definitely something that had been gaining steam since most of them were young teenagers.

“I know, but we have another problem to deal with before that can be addressed,” she said, giving him a significant look. “I saw your mother heading back to Alicante when I arrived.”

Alec shook his head. “She was here to speak with me. What does she have to do with the problem you mentioned?” he asked, confused about where this conversation was heading.

“Well, with what we learned from the Circle members you captured, the Clave has decided to recall all former Circle members to Idris for a reaffirmation of their defection from Valentine’s camp with the Soul Sword. They’ll be stationed there while the Valentine situation is dealt with and dispatched on short-term assignments to various Institutes, so they’re never in one place for too long. The thought is that it will reduce their opportunity to interact with Valentine’s forces, mostly for their safety, while keeping them actively working as Shadowhunters. They’re also being banned from holding high-level positions.”

Lydia watched him while she spoke, obviously waiting for him to make some connection. He wasn’t getting it, and he shook his head again at her. “How is that a problem we need to deal with?”

“You don’t know, do you?” she said, momentarily startled.

“Um…no?”

“Alec, your parents are being recalled to Idris and stripped of their Head of Institute positions.”

That gong sound Alec had heard earlier seemed to reverberate against the inside of his head again. “Pardon?”

This was too many revelations for one day.

“I can’t believe they never told you they were former Circle members. Isn’t Hodge Starkweather stationed here, too?” she asked, incredulous.

Alec was trying to follow the conversation, but thoughts of why his mother had suddenly appeared with an arranged marriage for him spun through his head. “More like imprisoned,” he murmured, still thinking.

“Are you all right?” Lydia asked, reaching out to place a hand on his wrist.

He cleared his throat and shook his head. “Not really. My mother was here to tell me they’ve arranged a match between Aline Penhallow and me. She basically threatened to disown me if I refused to go along with the marriage.”

Lydia squeezed his wrist briefly before pulling back. “I see. It makes sense that she would do that.”

Startled, Alec looked at Lydia, feeling betrayed before realizing she didn’t know about his preferences any more than anyone else really did. “What do you mean?”

“The Clave isn’t going to give you the Headship without a marriage to a suitable match. One whose parents don’t have ties to Valentine,” Lydia said, dropping yet another bomb on Alec’s head.

He finally slumped fully in the chair, rubbing his face with one hand as his thoughts chased each other through his head. “This day just keeps getting better,” he murmured, mostly to himself.

“I know it’s not a love match, Alec, but you and Aline could be really good for each other, politically and personally,” she said earnestly, sitting forward.

“It’s not really about Aline,” Alec said, looking at Lydia. “I mean, it is, but I always expected them to try to arrange a marriage for me at some point. They just have terrible timing. Six months ago, I might have gone along with it.”

Lydia cocked her head to one side, looking at him with understanding. “You’ve met someone?”

He nodded slowly. “Yeah.”

“And she’s not a good match? I haven’t heard anything about you seeing someone,” Lydia said, a slightly perplexed expression on her face. If there was one thing Nephilim society was good at, beyond demon killing, it was gossip.

“That would be because I haven’t really told anyone.” He looked at her. “I’m seeing a Downworlder. He’s a warlock,” he said the last part in a quiet rush, hoping that the trust he felt for her wasn’t about to betray him.

“Oh, Alec…” she breathed, looking at him with sympathy. “Are your feelings engaged?”

He nodded slowly and pulled a face. “Very much so.”

“You have found yourself in the most interesting of situations, haven’t you?” she asked, smiling at him slightly.

“Yep. I haven’t even had a chance to really absorb everything, and now you’ve added the bit about my parents,” he said, shaking his head. “I need to process everything and figure out a plan.”

Lydia nodded. “Exactly. I don’t really see how you can get out of marrying Aline if you want to be vested as the Head of the New York Institute,” she said. “This is a pickle.”

That analogy forced a huff of amusement from Alec, and he shot her a look. “That’s definitely one way to put it.”

Lydia stood, and Alec followed her to the door. She paused for a moment and pulled him into a hug. “Whatever you decide to do, I’ll support you.”

He squeezed her slightly in thanks, grateful to have a friend that understood all of the political machinations he was operating within. “Thank you. That means a lot.”

She pulled back and, with one last smile, opened the door. “I’ll meet with Jocelyn now and see what we can work out. If everything goes well, we’ll need to locate and retrieve the Cup and get it back here safely.”

Alec nodded. “Just let me know what we need to do, and I’ll see it done.”

She stepped out, and Alec closed the door behind her, then leaned forward to drop his forehead against it. The desire to leave the Institute and go see Magnus was almost overwhelming, but there really was no way he could do that. Instead, he forced himself to stand up and walked back to the desk. He drew out a piece of paper and started writing down everything he could think of about the situation with his parents, the Clave, and the looming possibility of being forced into a loveless marriage. It was a depressing list.

* * *

After what felt like days but was really less than two hours, there was a knock on the office door, and Alec looked up. “Come in,” he called.

The door swung open to reveal Lydia and Jocelyn. Alec stood and gestured for both of them to join him. “Please, have a seat,” he said, looking between them. “Have you finished negotiations already?”

Jocelyn nodded and glanced at Lydia. “Yes. In exchange for the Cup, the Clave has agreed to no further punishment than treating me as all the other former Circle members who willingly left Valentine will be treated.”

“Ah, so stationed out of Idris and short-term assignments?” Alec asked to clarify.

“Yes, just until the situation with Valentine is finally resolved,” Lydia continued. “Once that happens, we’ll fully reintegrate the former Circle members back into our society. They’ll all be able to request an Institute to be posted to, while the Heads of the Institutes will have the final approval on placement. For those that choose to, or are otherwise unable to find a posting, they’ll stay in Idris and work with the Ascension recruitment and training group.”

Alec nodded. “That sounds like an excellent deal, if I’m honest.” And it did. Jocelyn had much to answer for, as did all the Circle members, for her actions while part of Valentine’s organization. She also had another debt to their society, however, with all the damage done while she’d had the Cup hidden away for nearly two decades. That theft had cost two generations of Nephilim children to lose what little childhood they should have had due to the accelerated training they went through to become Shadowhunters as quickly as possible.

Making a face, Lydia nodded, showing she understood where Alec’s thoughts were headed. Jocelyn, on the other hand, gritted her teeth. “It’s an acceptable agreement,” she said.

Alec barely refrained from rolling his eyes. He dearly hoped that her daughter wasn’t quite so arrogant, but he didn’t have high hopes of that. He’d give her the benefit of the doubt, of course.

Lydia cleared her throat to redirect the conversation. “Now, Jocelyn and Clary will need to return home to collect some of their belongings – and the Mortal Cup – before transferring to Idris. Clary will begin her training, and Jocelyn will be debriefed.”

“Isabelle, Jace, and I will be accompanying you to pick up your things,” Alec told Jocelyn. “We can head out whenever you’re ready.”

“Thank you. We’re ready now,” Jocelyn said, glancing between Alec and Lydia. “And thank you for helping to make this possible. I didn’t realize until today how much I’ve missed being around other Nephilim.” She looked down at where her hands were clasped in her lap. “I was so focused on keeping Clary safe and away from the Shadow World that I forced myself to forget everything good about our people.”

Alec and Lydia exchanged a glance. They both had their opinions about the woman sitting before them, but they kept those opinions to themselves.

Lydia smiled gently at Jocelyn. “I’m sure that must have been very difficult.”

Alec chose not to say anything as Jocelyn returned the smile to Lydia. He cleared his throat and pushed back from the desk. “Well, then, let me get Jace and Izzy, and we’ll meet in the Ops Center. Ten minutes?” he said, looking to Jocelyn.

She nodded. “That sounds good.”

“All right, then we can head out. Lydia, if you’d like to use this office while we’re out, feel free,” he said.

“Thank you. I’m going to grab something to eat, but then I will take you up on that offer.”

With that, the small group dispersed. Alec rounded up his siblings and discovered that Clary was still with Jace. They appeared to be bonding over basic self-defense forms. Clary was giggling when he found them, and Jace looked…smitten? Alec had sighed and gotten their attention.

They were finally heading out into the city towards the Fray-child residence. The trip was uneventful, and they arrived without incident. Clary and Jocelyn took off to their rooms to start packing, Jace trailing after Clary and Izzy going with Jocelyn. Alec remained in the living room, keeping watch out the windows.

A knock at the door made his head snap around, and he reached for the blade at his thigh as he quietly crept to the door. Alec looked out the peephole and recognized the man on the other side. He opened the door slowly, glancing around the hallway before stepping back.

“Luke.”

“Alec,” the Werewolf replied.

“What brings you here?” Alec asked, trying to remain polite and keep any hint of suspicion from his voice.

Luke quirked an eyebrow and smiled slightly like he knew, anyway, then said, “Jocelyn texted me that you were here and that everything was worked out. I want to help make sure she and Clary get back to the Institute without a problem. More hands in a fight can’t hurt,” he added with a slight shrug.

Everything that Alec had seen and found about the man suggested he was sincere, so Alec nodded and walked back towards the row of windows. “Thank you. That would be appreciated,” he said. If he was going to get his plans through, he needed to start with trusting offers of help from Downworlders rather than politely declining.

The wait for the two women wasn’t long. They both reappeared a short time later, each carrying bags and a suitcase filled with their belongings. Jace and Izzy each had a bag over their shoulder as well. Alec was suddenly grateful that Luke had appeared because extra items in their hands were not entirely conducive to being ready to fight.

Somehow, he hadn’t expected them to have quite this much baggage. The irony of that thought wasn’t lost on him, either.

The group made it back to the Institute without a problem. At the door, Luke and Jocelyn exchanged farewells. It looked like their relationship was more than just friends, from Alec’s perspective, at any rate. Jace took the bags with Izzy and Clary to the rooms they would stay in for the evening before returning to Idris in the morning.

Alec opened the door to his office and spotted Lydia curled up on the sofa near the fireplace, working on a tablet.

She stood when they came in. “Any problems?” she asked.

“Surprisingly quiet,” Alec said.

Lydia and Alec both looked at Jocelyn. Alec had wondered where the Cup was hidden in all of the bags they’d carried back, and he’d assumed it was in one that Jocelyn had on her. It looked like she was reaching into a slim pocket at the front of one of the bags, and he wondered how that could possibly be where the Cup was stored.

She pulled out what looked like a deck of cards, and Alec stared, frowning. Was this some sort of…he didn’t even know what it could be.

Lydia was frowning next to him. “I thought you were retrieving the Cup, as well?” she asked.

Jocelyn nodded and started shuffling through the cards in her hand. “I did. It’s here,” she said, still looking intently through the cards.

Alec and Lydia exchanged a confused glance, and Alec wondered if maybe Jocelyn had been toying with them all along.

Finally, Jocelyn let out a sound of success and pulled one of the cards from the deck. She returned the rest to the pocket in her bag and flipped the card around to face them.

It was a tarot card. The Ace of Cups.

“I don’t understand,” Lydia said, shaking her head. “Is this a spell of some sort?”

Jocelyn shook her head and concentrated on the card. “No, more like a gift.”

With that, Jocelyn somehow reached into the card, her hand disappearing from view. When she pulled it out, the Mortal Cup came with it. Alec heard Lydia’s breath catch next to him, and he understood what she was feeling. Neither had been in the presence of any Mortal Instrument other than the Soul Sword. And here was the Cup that would hopefully return balance to the fight against demon incursions from the hell planes.

Jocelyn was smiling smugly at their dumbfounded and awestruck expressions. She extended her hand toward Lydia. “As promised, the Mortal Cup.”

* * *

Chapter 6

Lydia closed the wall safe gently, then ran her stele over it in a locking rune. She looked back at Alec, who stood leaning back against his desk, arms crossed over his chest. He couldn’t believe the Mortal Cup was in the safe in this very office. It was a surreal moment.

Moving back across the room, Lydia picked up a box from the floor next to where she’d been seated on the sofa. She brought it over to the desk next to Alec and set it down before running her stele over it to unlock it.

“I brought this because I don’t want anyone to see me leaving this office empty-handed.” She paused then and glanced at Alec. “Not that there should be many people in the Institute that actually know we have the Mortal Cup back…” She trailed off, looking to Alec for reassurance of that thought.

He nodded. “Right. You, me, Jocelyn, Clary, Izzy, and Jace should be the only ones that know we have it.” He paused and grimaced. “Unless my siblings or Clary discussed it out in the open, thinking they were alone.”

Lydia sighed. “Let’s hope not.”

Alarms started blaring before Alec could respond, and he jolted away from the desk. He shook his head and ran to the door, Lydia on his heels with the box held tightly in her grasp. “The timing of this is suspicious,” Alec said, dashing around a corner and into the Operations Center.

Shadowhunters were dashing about, heading to different intrusion points. A glance at one of the monitors showed that there were areas all along the outer walls where the wards were being attacked. He spun around and ran towards the armory.

The sight that greeted him was shocking for how out of place it was. Hodge Starkweather, their Weapons Master, fought a losing battle with a Forsaken that had apparently burst through one of the walls. Alec didn’t want to know how it had gotten through that quickly. He grabbed a seraph blade from the rack and ran in to join the fight.

Hodge was thrown across the room, hitting the screen between the training area and the armory proper with a loud thud. He slid to the floor and twitched slightly before going still. Alec wished he could check on him, but he kept all of his focus on the Forsaken in front of him. Lydia rushed in behind it, but her shorter reach kept her from getting close enough to hit anything as the Forsaken swung a flail in a deadly arc around itself.

Alec took an opening left by the Forsaken when it turned to face Lydia and darted in, stabbing the blade in his hand deep into its back. The formerly-human creature roared and swung back around, the flail coming within a breath of Alec’s face. He lunged backward, but the blade was stuck in the Forsaken’s back, and he couldn’t pry it loose. He tugged again as the Forsaken swung around, dragging him with it.

Lydia was attacking from the other side, trying to keep it distracted as well as she could, but the flail was making that difficult. Alec ducked again as it sailed past him. He was about to leave the blade lodged in the creature when it finally started to wiggle free.

Unfortunately, his focus was diverted by other Shadowhunters clamoring into the training area. The mace swung back and crashed into his arm, sending him reeling back at the strength behind the blow. In the next moment, the Forsaken’s hand swung around and bashed into the side of his face, nails scraping down the side of Alec’s neck as he wobbled.

The other Shadowhunters were attacking the Forsaken, but it seemed like it had chosen to focus on Alec now that the scent of his blood was in the air. It kept hitting him, the flail swinging wildly around but missing any others. A fist punched into his chest, knocking the wind out of him. Alec tried to keep breathing, but the pain made it difficult. He was pretty sure he’d cracked a few ribs.

The Forsaken raised its arm to strike at Alec again, but he saw an opening, and, with the last of his strength, he rammed the seraph blade into the Forsaken’s neck. It stumbled back, flail dropping to the floor with a resounding thud as the others started attacking it with vehemence.

Alec’s back hit the wall, pain ripping through his body from the various injuries he’d just received. He slid down the wall, seeing his vision darken at the edges. He caught a glimpse of blond as Lydia dropped to her knees next to him a moment later.

“We need a medic!” she yelled.

That was the last that Alec was aware of as he slipped into the darkness.

* * *

Magnus Bane’s hand snapped up at the sound of fluttering, catching a forming fire message as it appeared. He frowned as he read the message, eyes widening when he reached the end.

“Alexander…” he breathed.

He pulled out his cell phone and dialed Catarina Loss, one of his best friends and one of the best healers he’d ever had the opportunity to meet. Magnus’ thoughts moved to what he might find when he got to the Institute, and he shuddered, hoping he wasn’t going to be too late.

“Magnus? What is it?” Catarina asked, concern lacing her voice. He only ever rarely used a telephone to call her.

“The New York Institute has been attacked by Forsaken. They were able to break through the wards. There are several Nephilim injured. Alexander is one of them,” he said, voice tense and worried. “His injuries are apparently severe. I need your help.”

There was only the slightest hesitation on her end. “I’m on shift, but it’s slow. I’ll be there in a few minutes.”

Exhaling in relief, Magnus spun up a portal. “Thank you, Cat. I’ll tell them to expect you.”

Without another word, he hung up and dashed through the portal. He stepped out in front of the Institute’s main entrance and glanced around, spotting Nephilim patrolling around the outside of the building while it was damaged. He rushed up the few steps, and the door swung open as he approached.

He recognized the blond Nephilim that greeted him as one of Alexander’s siblings, but the name escaped him at that moment. Magnus was relieved that Alec had told his brother and sister about their relationship. He wasn’t entirely sure he’d be able to manage his reactions just now, knowing that Alexander had been injured.

“A friend of mine, Catarina Loss, will be arriving shortly. She’s the best healer I know,” Magnus said, skipping a greeting and rushing through the open door.

“Andrew, will you bring Ms. Loss to the infirmary when she arrives?” the blond asked another cherubic-looking Nephilim standing nearby.

“Of course,” came the swift reply.

“The infirmary’s this way,” Alexander’s brother said, gesturing, and then he was off at a trot, moving quickly through the Operations room.

Magnus followed behind, keeping pace as they rushed. His concern ratcheted up another level as they moved, wondering how badly off Alec or others must be.

“Tell me what happened?” he asked. “The fire message I received only said that Forsaken had attacked and that several had been injured severely, including Alexander.”

The blond glanced at him as they turned another corner. “Yeah. There were at least twenty of them, coming at the building from all sides. Less than half of that managed to actually breach the wards. We’re still not sure how they were able to do that, so we’d like to get you to look at that if you could.”

“Of course. Do you know why they were attacking?”

“No, we haven’t figured that part out yet. It seems like they just wanted to do as much damage as they could. We have about a dozen with injuries, but only two are severe, and one of those is stable.”

He stopped running outside a door and scrubbed a hand through his hair as he looked at Magnus. “Alec is one of the severe injuries. He’s not really stable, but he’s holding on. He took a few hits from a flail and several from the Forsaken itself.”

Magnus stared at him for a moment. “Forsaken aren’t that strong, and they don’t wield weapons.”

The other man raised an eyebrow, nodding once. “I know. These ones were different. We haven’t had a chance to examine the bodies yet.”

“Right. Take me to Alexander,” Magnus urged, and the blond nodded again before pushing through the door behind him.

Magnus followed, glancing around as they entered the infirmary. Nephilim were sitting or laying on all of the beds, and more were sitting in chairs between the beds. All of the ones he could see looked relatively stable, just wounded.

“Jace!” a voice called from further into the infirmary. The blond that Magnus was following picked up his pace.

“Lydia, this is High Warlock Magnus Bane,” he said, looking at the woman – another blond – who had called out. Jace had a hand on Magnus’ arm and was needlessly trying to gently propel him towards the bed.

Alec lay unconscious and bleeding sluggishly from several injuries on the bed next to her. The blond woman was drawing another healing rune on his skin, but it wasn’t making much of an impact if the state of his injuries was anything to go by. Magnus immediately moved closer, gently brushing the hair back from Alexander’s forehead as he began channeling magic to assess the damage the Forsaken had caused.

Magnus lost track of the conversation as it flowed around him. He had no idea who the woman was, and he honestly didn’t particularly care at that moment. What mattered was stabilizing Alexander’s injuries. His quick assessment showed extensive damage, some of it tainted by the Forsaken.

How had the creature become so strong? Magnus wondered, blue magic swirling around his fingers and flowing into Alexander as he worked.

At some point, he felt Catarina’s soothing magic connect with his own, and they worked together to repair what they could of Alexander’s injuries. His breathing smoothed out as the ribs that had been broken and the lung that had been punctured were healed. The runic magic that Shadowhunters used had helped clear away some of the surface-level injuries, allowing them to ignore those and focus on the more dangerous damage.

Finally, they had done everything they could in one session. Magnus and Catarina both disengaged their magic, leaning back to look at each other for a moment. “Cat,” Magnus said, reaching out a hand over Alexander to her. “Thank you for coming.”

The warlock who had been his friend for so many years took his hand, squeezing gently before they both looked back down at the sleeping Shadowhunter laying still beneath them. At some point, his state of unconsciousness had faded into a healing sleep. A touch of magic ensured he’d remain resting for at least the next eight to ten hours.

“Of course, Magnus. I’m glad I’m able to help,” she said. “I’d hate to miss being formally introduced to this one,” she murmured as Jace, Isabelle, and the blond woman from before returned to Alexander’s bed.

“How is he?” Jace asked.

Isabelle flicked his arm. “We can see he’s doing so much better than he was. Thank you for your help.”

Magnus smiled gently, concern and a touch of tiredness still sitting heavily on his shoulders. “I’m just glad we were able to do so,” he said. “We’ve repaired all of the major damage and quite a few less severe injuries. He should sleep for the next eight hours or so before waking. He’ll need to take it easy for the next couple of days,” Magnus warned.

He looked over to the other woman with the group. “I apologize. I don’t believe I caught your name when I arrived.”

“Oh, this is Lydia Branwell,” Jace said simply. Magnus assumed she was the one the Clave had sent to deal with Jocelyn.

“Well, it’s nice to meet you, Ms. Branwell.” He glanced around at the other Nephilim still waiting to be treated and back down at Alexander. “I wish it were under better circumstances, of course.”

“Lydia, please, and likewise.” Lydia paused a moment, looking between Magnus and Catarina. “If I might impose, would you both be available for a bit longer? Isabelle has been analyzing one of the Forsaken bodies that we retrieved, and we’d like you to have a look at it.”

Magnus nodded. “I would like to have a look at that body, yes. There’s something very not-right about these Forsaken.” He looked over to Catarina. “Do you have time, my dear?”

Catarina nodded. “Yes. I’ll also have a look at some of your more serious injuries if you’d like,” she offered.

Lydia smiled brightly. “That would be most welcome.”

“While you do that, I should have a look at the wards and see how badly they’ve been mangled,” Magnus said, trying to keep from glancing down at Alexander with any particular emotion. It was difficult to keep himself from checking to make sure he was still sleeping peacefully while maintaining a neutral face, but he managed.

“Again, that would also be most welcome,” Lydia said, nodding her thanks at Magnus.

* * *

Alec had managed to convince everyone that he’d rest in his office better than he would in his bedroom. He promised to stay on the couch as much as possible and nap whenever he needed to, but at least he could still read reports and keep on top of the work, especially in the middle of a situation.

The knock on the door had him swinging his legs around carefully and dropping them to the floor. Alec decided not to bother standing, but he couldn’t bring himself to meet with one of his people while lounging.

“Come in,” he called, watching as the door swung open. “Hodge. Everything all right?”

Hodge Starkweather, the current Weapons Master, entered the room and closed the door. He edged further into the room, his expression belying the nervousness he obviously felt. “I don’t know,” he admitted.

Alec frowned. “Have a seat. What’s going on?” he asked as Hodge got settled.

The other man didn’t respond right away. Instead, he looked around the office and down at his hands but wouldn’t meet Alec’s eyes. Finally, Hodge made eye contact and took a deep breath. “Valentine wants me to steal the cup and kidnap Jocelyn,” he said. “That’s why the Forsaken were sent to attack us. He sent me a message.”

Alec blinked at him, thoughts running around his head. “Huh. That’s a lot of effort to pass a note.”

Hodge inclined his head and shrugged. “He’s a megalomaniac. It probably didn’t hurt that the attack had the added benefit of dealing damage to the Institute.”

“True. Thank you for telling me,” Alec said, mind spinning with the implications of the message. The thought of the opportunity in front of them was buzzing under his skin. “I’m going to have Lydia join us. We can use this to our advantage.”

After Alec sent the fire message, he looked back to Hodge and tilted his head. There was still an air of nervousness around the man. “Lydia already talked to you about the Clave’s new plan for ex-Circle members, right?” he asked, fiddling with the stele still in his hand.

Hodge nodded. “Yeah, we talked about it.” For a moment, the older man’s face looked heartbreakingly vulnerable. “I just hope it’s something they see through.”

“I understand,” Alec said. “Or, I understand as much as I’m able to without having the experience of being forbidden from leaving the Institute.” His mouth quirked in a rueful smile.

“That’s the part that makes all of this so difficult,” Hodge said. “If what Lydia says the Clave is planning actually happens…” He trailed off, gazing into the distance. “If that happens, then my whole life changes.

“I know that Valentine is wrong. I know that he won’t win. How could I chance my future on a megalomaniac?”

A knock on the door interrupted Alec before he could respond. “Come in,” he called.

The door swung open, revealing Lydia, as expected. “You have something?” she asked, glancing at Hodge as she strode further into the office and over to where they were seated.

“Yeah,” Alec nodded and gestured at the seat next to Hodge. “Have a seat. Hodge got a message from Valentine via the Forsaken,” he said, words striking with the same blunt force that they had when Hodge had originally delivered them.

“I see,” Lydia said, crossing one leg over the other and looking at Hodge. “And you chose to share this message with Alec?”

“Our conversation earlier…let me imagine having a life, again,” Hodge said.

Lydia nodded once, accepting his statement at face value. “So, what does he want?”

Alec filled her in on the message’s contents. “And then I had a thought of how we could use this to our advantage. We could use the decoy.”

“Now, that is an interesting idea,” Lydia said, looking to Hodge.

Hodge looked between the two of them with a frown on his face. “The decoy?” he prompted.

“Lydia has a decoy of the Mortal Cup,” Alec said. “This is going to be dangerous, of course, but it has a chance of getting us close enough to Valentine to figure out where he’s hiding. But only if you are willing to do it.”

Hodge didn’t speak for a moment, instead looking away from the pair of them and thinking about the situation. “But it would help us stop Valentine’s madness sooner rather than later. And it would go a long way to cementing my place back in Nephilim society,” he finally murmured.

Lydia nodded. “It would, yes.”

“If we do this, we will need to come up with a plan that lets us keep you as safe as possible,” Alec added. “And you don’t have to do this, Hodge. It’s not a requirement for anything. You’re still going to be treated as you would have been before receiving this message.”

“I understand, Alec.” Hodge went quiet again, sinking into his thoughts. “I’ll do it. I want this to be done,” he said. “It is partially selfish on my part, though, just so you know. I’m really looking forward to getting to leave this building.” He smiled wryly at Alec and Lydia.

Alec returned the smile. “That sounds normal to me.”

Hodge gave one more firm nod. “So, where do we start?”

* * *

Chapter 7

The planning session had gone on for most of the afternoon. Alec was finally alone again and had stretched out along the couch. He was surprised by how tired he was, though he really knew he shouldn’t be. The injuries he’d sustained had been severe. Without the magical healing Alec had received, he knew he’d either still be in the infirmary or, worst-case scenario, he’d have succumbed to those injuries altogether. There was a deep ache of tiredness all the way down to his bones, and Alec figured he’d probably sleep hard that evening.

Another knock had him drawing a deep breath and pushing himself back to a sitting position. It was getting progressively more difficult to sit upright, and Alec was contemplating heading back to his quarters to work, hopefully avoiding any more interruptions.

“Come in,” he called, pushing the reports around on the coffee table in front of him.

The door swung open, and Alec looked back up to see Magnus stepping into the office and closing the door behind him. A gentle swirl of magic did something to the door – what, Alec didn’t know, and he honestly didn’t care.

“Magnus,” he breathed, smiling softly at the Warlock as he walked across the room to sit next to him on the couch.

“Hello, Alexander,” Magnus said, taking one of his hands. “How are you feeling, darling?”

“Better now that you’re here,” Alec replied, blushing immediately. He cursed his easily embarrassed emotions. The hope that he would eventually grow out of the blushing was starting to fade. It seemed he’d be cursed with the problem forever.

Magnus grinned at him. “As nice as that is, I’m more interested in how you feel when I’m not here.”

“Tired,” Alec admitted, letting his head drop back against the headrest of the sofa. “I’ve been trying to rest, but we had a bit of a breakthrough earlier in finding Valentine. The planning around that took most of the afternoon.”

“Oh?” Magnus prompted, raising an eyebrow curiously.

Alec nodded. “Yeah. Hodge got a message from Valentine through the Forsaken attack.” He gave the broad brushstrokes of their planning session. It wasn’t that he had a problem sharing the plan with Magnus. His trust in the Warlock wasn’t in question. Alec just didn’t have the energy to go into detail at that particular moment.

“If there’s anything I can do to help, let me know,” Magnus said, squeezing Alec’s hand gently.

“I’m very glad you said that because I sort of already presumed you would be willing to do some portals when the time comes.”

“Of course! I’m glad you knew you didn’t even have to ask,” Magnus said. “Capturing or killing Valentine should be a top priority for all of us as he is a threat to all of us.”

“Agreed.” Feeling incredibly sappy, Alec pulled Magnus’ hand up to his mouth and kissed the back of it before letting it fall back to his lap. Magnus’s expression said he hadn’t been expecting that particular gesture. He seemed…astounded that it had happened, but the small smile said he appreciated it.

Alec made a mental note to be sappier around Magnus if it gave him that smile.

“What are your plans for the rest of the night?” Alec asked, his thumb stroking the back of the hand in his.

Magnus quirked a shoulder slightly. “Nothing specific. I’m finished with the wards for tonight. I’ll need to do another round with them tomorrow to make sure they’re fully fortified.”

Alec nodded slowly. The urge to keep Magnus with him overnight was strong, but their relationship wasn’t out in the open, and…Alec groaned as the memory of everything that had happened before the Forsaken attack came back to him. How could he have forgotten that his mother had arranged a marriage for him with a woman?

“What’s wrong?” Magnus asked, face crinkling into a concerned frown. He sat up more on the sofa and raised his other hand, blue magic swirling around it like he was going to scan Alec.

“No, nothing like that. I’m sorry,” Alec said, shaking his head. “I just remembered everything that I think my subconscious was trying to forget.”

He took a deep breath and rolled his head along the headrest to fully look at Magnus. “I have to talk to you about a few things that my mother brought up, but I really don’t have the energy to get into it tonight.”

The frown was still on Magnus’ face. “All right,” he drawled.

“My parents, in their infinite wisdom, have decided to arrange my marriage to a woman.” Alec wondered if he would get to stop dropping major announcements sometime soon. “They’ve scheduled the wedding for two weeks out. I’m still trying to figure out how to get out of it, but I haven’t exactly had much time.”

Magnus stared at him for a moment, something indecipherable in his eyes. “I see,” he said, his voice low.

“Magnus,” Alec started, then broke off at the knock on his door, sighing heavily. “Come in.”

Next to him, Magnus swirled his free hand and whatever he had done to the door fell away just as the door began opening. He started trying to withdraw his other hand from Alec’s grasp, but Alec wasn’t ready to let go just because of someone at the door. He looked at Magnus and pulled his hand up to kiss the back of it one more time before releasing him.

When he finally looked up, Andrew Underhill was standing in the office, studiously looking unconcerned, though Alec wondered at the slight smile. “Sir, we’ve received reports of numerous attacks on local Downworlders from what appears to be Shadowhunters. There’s been an incident between one of our teams and a group of werewolves.”

Alec heaved another sigh and pushed himself up from the sofa. There was no way he would get to go hide out in his room at this point. He looked back at Magnus. “Will you join me? I’m sure this will need some delicate communication with the pack’s Alpha.”

Standing, Magnus nodded. “Of course,” he said, voice still quieter than Alec was expecting.

Underhill was glancing between them, keeping his expression carefully neutral.

“Do you have more details?” Alec asked, leading the way out of the door. Underhill followed a step behind, rattling off the information he had as they made their way into the Operations Center.

Alec was listening with half of his attention still on Magnus, hoping he hadn’t just monumentally messed up with the scene in front of Underhill. His thoughts started spiraling as he thought about how quiet Magnus had gone after telling him about his mother’s decree. It took him longer than he liked, but Alec finally realized he’d missed the last thing Underhill had said. Asking him to repeat it helped Alec bring his attention to the conversation in full.

“So, all of these incidents have been Shadowhunters attacking Downworlders for no apparent reason?” Alec asked, frowning as he pointed at the various red dots on the display in front of where they were standing. “What teams do we have out tonight?”

Underhill shook his head slightly and pressed a couple of buttons. A smaller smattering of green dots showed up on the map. “We’re really light on patrols tonight. Demon activity is low, thankfully, but we’ve had teams pulling duty guarding the outside, working on repairs, and on the injured list.

“None of our teams were anywhere near the attacks that have been reported,” Underhill finished.

“Circle members,” Magnus said, voice quiet, as he stood next to Alec. “Unless Shadowhunters are coming in from outside of New York, anyway.” He glanced at Alec for a moment.

“No,” Alec confirmed. “Not hat I’m aware of, anyway. It has to be the Circle. We know they’re already operating in New York, so it stands to reason it’s them. But why do the Downworlders think it’s Institute Shadowhunter?”

Magnus raised an eyebrow and said, “Because, unfortunately, one Shadowhunter looks like another to most Downworlders. The black leather is ubiquitous, darling.”

Tilting his head to one side, Alec glanced around at the Shadowhunters working at the stations near him. There was also a group about to head out on patrol. Sure enough, most of them were wearing at least one piece of dark leather.

“Well. That’s true,” he admitted. “I’m going to blame my limited grasp of the obvious on how tired I am right now. Underhill, tell all patrols to be extra cautious around Downworlders this evening. Are Izzy and Jace here?”

Checking one of the screens in front of him, Underhill nodded. “They’re scheduled for a patrol in an hour but should be here.”

“Take them off the schedule for tonight. I need to have them take messages to the Alpha of the Werewolves, the leader of the Vampires, and to the Seelies. We need to spread the word that it’s not our people doing this, but the Circle.” Alec sighed and rubbed a hand across his face, holding a yawn in with effort. The exhaustion he felt was getting worse. “I have no idea how we’re going to differentiate our patrols from the Circle, especially if they’re deliberately trying to start trouble on our behalf. The leather is mostly for protection.”

Magnus grimaced. “Yes, there’s not much you can do other than have them switch to white leathers,” he said. “That is something I could help with, though,” he offered.

The thought of having his black leather jacket that helped camouflage him in the darkness while hunting flipped to white had a visceral shudder traveling up Alec’s back. “I…” he started, wondering how to decline without offense.

“That thought gives me the heebie-jeebies,” Jace said.

Alec startled. “When did you get here?” he asked, wondering how he could have missed the arrival of his siblings. He turned slightly and spotted Izzy standing further behind him.

His siblings exchanged a glance and looked back at him with a frown. “We’ve been standing here for a few minutes, Alec,” Izzy said, her voice gentle with concern. “Are you all right?”

“Yeah, yeah. I’m fine. Just exhausted,” Alec said, waving off the concern.

“You need to get some rest,” Magnus said.

Nodding, Alec brought Izzy and Jace up to speed with what he needed them to do instead of their normal patrol.

* * *

The end of the day had arrived and passed, and Alec found himself still working. He knew he was due for another lecture from someone any minute now, and he wanted to do his best to avoid that. Grabbing his tablet and a few folders of budget items that needed to be reviewed, Alec stood carefully and turned off the lights in the office.

Everything looked so normal in here, but he knew that the rest of the Institute was partially in shambles. Magnus had managed to get the wards set to rights and had helped repair some of the cosmetic damage, but it was more than just that. The sanctuary that the Institute provided to Shadowhunters had been violated, and Alec felt like something was crawling under his skin at that thought.

He snapped out of his thoughts as he reached the elevators, which was not where he’d intended to wind up. Alec had thought he’d been heading back to his quarters, which happened to be in the opposite direction, so to find himself here was a bit unsettling.

Still, the urge he felt to step into the elevator and stop by the Angelic Core that powered everything was growing. Alec hadn’t even fully realized that was the urge he’d been feeling, so he hit the button to take him down to the level and entered his access code.

The ride was quick, and he stood in front of the Core within moments. Something about the pulsing orb was captivating, and Alec stared at it for a long moment. He thought there was the faintest whisper of something in the distance, but the more he tried to make it out, the further away it sounded.

Finally, he looked around one last time and made sure everything was intact and that no harm had come to the Core. Alec turned and tossed one last look at the Core over his shoulder as he left.

As he pressed the button on the elevator, Alec glanced at his watch and started in surprise. It had either been far later than he’d thought when he’d left his office, or Alec had spent much longer staring at the Core than he’d realized.

* * *

Hodge stared as Valentine finished his speech and started lowering his hand into the tank of liquid. Doubt about the decision he’d made to put his life on the line flashed through him for a moment, but Hodge didn’t regret it. He’d approached Valentine with the decoy cup as planned, angling for a way to get back to Valentine’s headquarters so that Alec and the others could track the location. Now, as he stood waiting for Valentine to learn the truth of his deception, Hodge wondered if he was actually ready to die now that he’d finally had a taste of freedom.

For the briefest of moments, he wondered what would have happened if he’d actually done as Valentine had ordered and given him the real cup. But he’d made his decision, and it was possibly the most honorable thing he’d done in his lifetime, other than trying to give Maryse’s and Robert’s children a fraction of the love and support their parents should have given them.

It was all down to this moment where his actions nearly twenty years ago would be at least partially redeemed.

Valentine withdrew his hand from the red liquid and stared at the cup for a moment. “This…is not the Mortal Cup.” He turned to look at Hodge, an eyebrow raised as he held the cup out to the side, dripping the viscous liquid that Hodge was pretty sure was actually blood. “What do you have to say about this…old friend?” he asked.

Fear crept up Hodge’s spine like he hadn’t felt in decades. He shook his head frantically and let the fear show on his face. “I…I don’t know! Valentine, I swear! I – that has to be the Cup! It was what Branwell pulled out of the safe. Why would they have a fake Cup in a safe?” he asked, desperate to stall for time.

Hodge felt more than saw Valentine’s minions step closer on either side of him, and he swallowed, hoping that Alec and the others would get here before he had to try to fight his way off a ship crawling with Circle members, mundane or not.

Valentine cocked his head slightly. “I don’t know, Hodge. Why do you think they’d have a decoy in a safe?”

Thankfully, before Hodge had to try to come up with an answer, a shout rang out in the night, and Shadowhunters were pouring across the gangplank. Hodge spun, using his elbow to knock out one of the men standing behind him. He drew his seraph blade and parried just as the other Circle member swung his own blade at Hodge’s back.

The fight was on.

Things were a furious blur of action from then, and Hodge lost track of Valentine in the fury of the fight. He was trying his best to incapacitate rather than kill the Circle members he was being attacked by, but in many cases, there was no choice other than kill or be killed.

The loss of so many Nephilim, many of them as young or younger than Alec, Izzy, and Jace, was such a terrible waste.

Finally, the fight dwindled to a close, Nephilim from both sides and mundanes lying dead or unconscious on the ground. Hodge looked around, holding his hand to the gash on his side. He’d taken a glancing blow at some point, and while it hurt, he’d live. He pulled his stele from his pocket and quickly drew an iratze to speed up the healing process.

* * *

Alec sighed as he looked around, listening to Magnus and Lydia talk about the fight. So many had died needlessly, especially when the real enemy wasn’t the Downworlders that they were so prejudiced against; it was the demons that broke through from Edom and other hell dimensions that truly posed a threat to Mundanes, Shadowhunters, and Downworlders alike.

Hodge appeared at the side of the small group he was with. “Everyone okay?” he asked as he got near enough.

Alec looked around the ship’s deck, noting yet again the number of dead and unconscious bodies around them, and nodded once. “We lost a couple of people, but most came through without anything more than minor injuries. A ship full of Mundanes, barely trained, wouldn’t last long against Shadowhunters. Are you okay?” he asked, nodding towards the patch of red on Hodge’s side.

“Yeah, it’s minor. The iratze is already working.” The other man glanced around. “I lost track during the fight, but what happened to Valentine? Did we get him?”

“No,” Alec said shortly. “He forced a Warlocks he’s been holding captive to open a portal for him. He got away through the portal with her and a couple of his followers before we could cut them off.

“He’s still out there, but we did a lot of damage to his resources,” Alec continued with a grimace, trying to find the silver lining in the disappointing situation.

“And he doesn’t have the Cup,” Lydia added, smiling ever so slightly. “You did a good job, Hodge. You should be proud.”

Hodge shook his head. “I’d be prouder if we’d actually managed to catch the fucker. But at least we’re a step closer, I guess.”

“That’s the spirit!” Magnus chimed in.

Alec raised an eyebrow at him.

Magnus shrugged.

“We’ll be tearing this ship apart for a while yet,” Alec said, looking back to Hodge. “You’re free to stay and join one of the teams or head back to the Institute.”

“I’ll stay,” Hodge replied immediately. “I’m not quite ready to go back inside just yet.”

Alec nodded. “All right, then. Underhill’s coordinating assignments. Check in with him and see where he wants you. Thank you again for making this possible. Without your efforts, we wouldn’t have gotten as close as we did or hurt Valentine’s efforts as much as we have,” Alec said, smiling at Hodge.

Hodge nodded. “Of course. I’m glad I was able to help.” With that and a final nod, he left.

Lydia spoke next. “I’m going to head below deck. See if anyone’s found anything that could point us towards Valentine’s new location,” she said.

“All right. Let me know if anything comes up. I need to head back to the Institute and make sure everything’s all right there.”

He waited until Lydia had left to turn to Magnus. “Will you walk with me?” he asked, tilting his head slightly away from the ship. The last several days had continued to be busy enough that he hadn’t been able to spend any time with Magnus outside of their limited encounters at the Institute. Alec missed him. He was also concerned about how they’d left their conversation before the attacks on the Downworlders had begun. There had been no time to get back to the conversation, and Alec knew he’d dropped several massive statements that had to be festering somewhat. He’d wished several times that he’d kept quiet but also couldn’t deny that he was glad something was at least out in the open.

Magnus nodded and turned to head back towards the gangplank, Alec following in his wake. Once they were back on the docks and away from the throngs of Shadowhunters on board the ship, Alec shoved his hands in his pockets and looked over to Magnus. “I feel like I haven’t gotten to really talk to you in days. I miss you,” he admitted, his voice low.

Magnus quirked an eyebrow at him and smiled. “I miss you, as well. It has been a while. Hopefully, now that Valentine’s ship has been captured, we can slow down a bit until the next emergency comes up.”

They lapsed into silence then, walking away from the docks and towards the Institute. Finally, Alec figured they were far enough from the ship that they wouldn’t be seen, so he reached out and grabbed Magnus’ hand, squeezing gently as he tugged him off the sidewalk and into a small park that they were passing. It wasn’t much more than some pathways winding through some trees and greenery between buildings, but there was a bench halfway in that Alec was moving towards.

He kept hold of Magnus’ hand, aching for the physical connection of touch he’d been missing just as much as the connection words brought. “I hate making small talk with you,” he admitted softly, the darkness helping him admit his more embarrassing feelings. “You’re more important than small talk.”

“Alec,” Magnus began, and Alec flinched slightly, tightening his grip on Magnus’ hand without thought as if he could ward off whatever was coming next. It wasn’t often that Magnus addressed him as “Alec” rather than “Alexander,” and he worried over the cause.

They reached the bench, and Alec turned to sit, tugging Magnus down with him. “You don’t normally call me that,” he said, wanting to head off the conversation.

Magnus looked down at their joined hands. “I know. I’ve been thinking a lot the last few days.”

Alec let his eyes close. He’d been so close to admitting to Magnus how he felt, finally giving voice to the words he’d held close to his heart for longer than he’d thought. And now Magnus sounded like he was about to break up with him. “Oh?” he prompted when the silence stretched.

Magnus nodded and drew a deep breath. “I don’t think I can do this anymore,” he started.

“What…” Alec trailed off, shaking his head as a jolt of pain rushed through him. “What do you mean?”

“I can’t be your secret any longer, Alexander. But I don’t think you’re ready for everyone to know you’re in a relationship, with a man or a Downworlder.”

Alec looked away for a moment. “You know it’s complicated,” he said, and Magnus nodded. “And I don’t intend for it to be like this for much longer.”

“That’s just it, though. Will it even be an issue for long? What about your impending nuptials?” Magnus asked, and Alec thought he heard the pain in the other man’s voice.

“I already told you I’m not going to marry Aline. I’m not going to marry any woman,” Alec said firmly, squeezing the hand he still held.

“But you’ll lose the Institute.”

Alec shook his head, still aggravated at that situation. “I know, but I don’t see any way around that. I’ve been trying to get myself used to the idea of never being Head of the Institute. That’s been hard, but harder is the thought of not having you in my life.” He felt like he was crawling out onto a very small limb that could crack under his weight at any moment.

Magnus looked at him sharply, his expression unreadable in the darkness they were surrounded by. “But there’s so much good you can do between the Downworld and the Clave! How could you give that up?” he asked.

“I’ll find another way,” Alec replied simply. There was nothing simple about it, and he knew that, but he would find another way if he had to.

“I don’t think you should,” Magnus said.

Alec blinked several times, shocked at what Magnus had just said. He slowly withdrew his hand and stood from the bench, taking a few steps away. With his back to Magnus, he said, voice tight, “Please explain what you mean by that because my assumptions are not good, Magnus.”

He felt numb as he waited for Magnus to say something, anything, that could possibly make that statement better.

“Alexander…you have your whole life ahead of you. All the effort you’ve put into preparing to be Head of the Institute, all the plans you’ve talked about to make things better with the Downworld? How could I possibly ask you to give that up?” Magnus asked, his own voice heavy with emotion.

Alec heard him draw in a sharp breath, and he turned to look at Magnus, feeling moisture start to gather in his eyes. The numbness that had surrounded him burst into agony. “You’re not asking me to do anything,” he said, hurt lacing his words. “That’s part of the problem.

“I have my whole life ahead of me, Magnus? I thought that you might have been part of that. Is it better for me to give up everything that I am, deny who I am, and marry a woman just to make my society happy?” Alec stalked forward until he was just a few steps from Magnus and stared down at him. “I’m supposed to give you up to live a lie?”

“That’s – “Magnus started, but Alec cut him off.

“Unless that’s what you want.” He looked away for a moment, trying to steel himself for what he was about to say. “Unless you don’t want to tie yourself to someone with a mortal lifespan.”

“Alexander…”

It was becoming more difficult to hold the tears at bay, though Alec was never one to cry. “I understand if you’d rather not watch someone you love grow old and die. Of course, I do.” When he was on the verge of giving up everything for him, the thought of ending things with Magnus was like a knife to the gut. A tear spilled over. “If you’d rather spare yourself that pain…” He shook his head. “I understand,” he said firmly and stood up straight, taking a step back and nodding slowly, even as he fought to keep himself from becoming an emotional wreck in front of Magnus.

“Of course I understand. I love you. If I can do anything to keep you from suffering, then, of course, I’ll do whatever is in my power to make that happen.” Alec gave a mirthless laugh and shook his head before he continued. “Even if that means giving you up.”

Alec turned away, trying to gather himself enough to head back to the Institute and lock himself away in his office, where he could try to find a way to bury his feelings in privacy. Several moments passed before he felt Magnus come up behind him. He stiffened slightly, trying to protect whatever composure he had left. A hand gently rested on his bicep.

“I love you, too, Alexander.”

That put paid to any attempt he’d made at composure.

Another tear spilled over as he turned to face Magnus. “Then why did you say that?” he asked.

Magnus shook his head and lifted the other hand to gently wipe away the tear on Alec’s cheek. “I don’t know, honestly. Of course, I don’t think you should force yourself to live a lie with someone you couldn’t ever love, darling. There’s no good reason for where my mind went just now.” He shook his head and looked away again. “I’m so sorry.”

“I can’t say it’s all right because it’s really not,” Alec said but reached out to grab Magnus’ hand before he could pull away. “But that doesn’t change how I feel about you. It doesn’t change that I want to be with you.”

Magnus looked up at him, eyes solemn yet hopeful. “I meant what I said. I love you. I want to be with you for however long we have together.”

Alec smiled slightly. “You won’t mind when I get old? I’ll look like some creepy old guy dating a hot youngster one day, you realize,” he said, trying to inject some levity into the moment. He felt insecure about it, though, and he didn’t know quite how to have that conversation with Magnus. This was the closest he could get to broaching the topic.

Magnus returned the smile and stepped back, running a hand from his head down towards his feet. A moment later, a version of him aged at least twenty years stood before Alec. “I will do whatever we need to to make you feel comfortable, darling.”

Shaking his head, Alec stepped forward. “Well, you’re hot like this, too, but let’s table that conversation for the moment,” he said and reached out to bring Magnus into his arms. “I love you. Just the way you are. For everything that you are,” he whispered and leaned forward to press a kiss to Magnus’ lips.

What started as something mostly chaste quickly grew into a very heated make-out session. Magnus nudged Alec back towards the bench, still kissing him, and once Alec was seated, proceeded to climb into his lap. Alec leaned forward, pressing hot, open-mouthed kisses against the column of Magnus’ neck. He could not resist the urge to nibble slightly but tried not to leave any visible marks. Magnus would be perfectly capable of healing them, of course; Alec just preferred to be more considerate of his lover if they hadn’t discussed marking beforehand.

Eventually, their kissing grew to the point that they were on the verge of doing something to ease their arousal in public, and Alec pulled back. “As much as I’d like to continue this, I’d rather be in one of our bedrooms, and I don’t think that’s going to be in our immediate future.”

Magnus stared at him, panting. Naked disbelief and longing were written all over his face. His lips were glistening in the moonlight, and Alec had the strongest urge to just dive back in and continue where they left off. Instead, he marshaled all of his self-control and dropped a quick peck on the side of Magnus’ mouth, then started urging him back up to his feet. Alec snuck another kiss as he stood, then straightened his jacket from where Magnus had started pushing it back off his shoulders.

Clearing his throat, Alec held his hand out to Magnus. “Walk with me to the Institute?” he asked, smiling softly.

Magnus huffed once more and took his hand. “I’ll walk with you anywhere,” he murmured as they left the park.

Alec grinned and pulled Magnus’ hand up to drop a kiss on the back of it. At least he wasn’t the only one that was prone to turning on the sap.

* * *

Chapter 8

“You’ve got my number, right?” Jace asked as he leaned in to press another kiss to Clary’s lips.

“Uh-huh, programmed in my phone,” Clary said, not really paying attention to what Jace was asking. He’d already asked her a few times if she had his phone number, and she’d already reminded him a few times that she’d been told cell phones didn’t work in Alicante due to the demon towers. She wrapped her arms tighter around his neck and pulled him in for another kiss.

“I know how to send fire messages, too,” she whispered against his mouth before going in for another kiss.

“Right… that’s right,” he muttered, pressing her back against the wall next to her door. His hand was slowly starting to creep up under her shirt, fingers tickling around the lace of her bra. The other hand had slid down her thigh and pulled her leg up around his waist before those fingers were also on a northerly path up her skirt. The heat of his hands was making everything in their vicinity tingle with anticipation.

A boom on the door next to her head made them jump.

The cackle that followed gave away who was responsible. “Izzy, what the hell!?” Jace yelled at his parabatai, practically in Clary’s ear.

She winced and started pushing away from the wall, trying to move the solid bulk of the blond that was pressed against her. It was challenging. And she found that ridiculously hot.

The door popped open, and Izzy stuck her head in, giving the pair of them a knowing grin. “I know what you were up to…” she taunted in a sing-song voice.

“What you interrupted, you mean?” Clary asked, frustrated but amused despite herself.

“A good thing I did,” Izzy whispered, glancing back over her shoulder. “Your mom’s coming.”

Clary finished pushing Jace off her and quickly ran her hands through her head. Adult, she may be, but her mother didn’t need to see her freshly disheveled from a really hot nearly-sex session with her boyfriend. “Damn. Is it time to go already?” she asked, running over to the dresser to finish throwing things into the duffel bag lying open on the top.

“You’re not finished packing yet, Clary?” Jocelyn asked as she stepped into the room. She was giving Jace a side-eye when Clary glanced over.

“Um. No, not yet? I’m almost done. Just got a bit…um.”

“Um…distracted, maybe?” Jocelyn asked, smirking slightly. “Hi, Jace.”

Jace cleared his throat and shuffled his feet a bit. He was trying to look casual, but Clary could see the flush on his face from what they’d just been doing. “Hi, Jocelyn,” he finally said.

For such a generally confident man, it truly amused Clary how awkward he could be around her mother. She supposed she could excuse him this time. They had just had a pretty vigorous make-out session before she’d arrived.

Clary finished throwing the last of her things into the bag and zipped it up. “See? All done. I just had a couple of last things to grab,” she said, grinning at her mother as she shouldered the bag.

Jocelyn nodded. “Good. Let’s grab the rest of your things and get to the portal room. Lydia said they’re expecting us soon.” She glanced between Clary and Jace, then smiled slightly and turned to leave. “Don’t be too long saying goodbye.”

Izzy had disappeared at some point while Clary was packing, leaving just her and Jace in the room again. Clary sighed and dropped the bag on the bed she’d come to think of as hers before moving over into the circle of Jace’s arms. It amazed her how attached she’d gotten to this man in such a short amount of time.

“I’m going to miss you,” she mumbled into Jace’s shoulder.

He squeezed her gently, and she felt a kiss drop onto the top of her head. “I’m going to miss you, too. But, it’s only for a few months. You’ll get the basic training drilled into you and be back here in no time. Assuming you request New York as your assignment,” he added quietly.

“Of course, I’m going to ask for New York! My whole life is here,” she said, leaning back to look into his mismatched eyes. “You’re here. Where else would I want to go?”

Jace smiled and leaned down to kiss her, much more chastely this time. They didn’t have time to get pulled into anything else if they wanted to avoid another visit from her mother.

* * *

Alec watched as Maryse and Robert arrived through the portal from Idris. “Mother. Father. Welcome back,” he said, voice stoic as he watched them gather themselves after the jolt.

“Alec. Walk with us,” Maryse said, striding past Alec without really looking at him.

He wondered what he’d done this time to cause that reaction from her.

The walk back to the Head’s office was done in silence, but the atmosphere around his parents was more tense than usual. Once they reached the office, Maryse and Robert headed to the seating area. Maryse claimed Alec’s preferred spot and sat, looking at him expectantly. Alec glanced between his parents as he took the chair across from them.

“What’s going on?” he asked.

Robert cleared his throat. “We have something we need to tell you.” He looked at Maryse, and Alec was sure he saw nervousness on his father’s face.

Alec looked between his parents again. “Is this about your membership in the Circle?” he asked bluntly. It was either that, someone had died, or they were getting a divorce. None of the three options were preferable, but he’d rather get this out of the way anyway.

Maryse startled. “How did you find out about that?” she asked. “We never wanted you to know…”

Alec frowned. “What, so I wouldn’t ask about why I’m the one that has to restore the family’s honor? I’m not the one that damaged our name, despite being made to feel that way my entire life,” he said, finally letting some of his angst about his childhood out to his parents.

Maryse and Robert both looked away for a moment. “It’s not like that, Alec. Of course, we want you to do well for the family, but we never meant to make you feel responsible for the tarnish on the Lightwood name,” Robert said, looking at his son with earnest eyes. “I’m sorry if we ever made you feel that way.”

Looking away, Alec sighed. “How could you be members of that monster’s little society of bigots?” he asked, voice quiet. “That’s the part I don’t understand. I know you don’t like Downworlders, but I never thought you’d be part of a group bent on the genocide of anyone with demon blood.”

Maryse and Robert exchanged another glance, one loaded with something that Alec couldn’t decipher. Maryse finally sighed and looked back at Alec. “It’s not that simple. Valentine Morgenstern…he was, and still is, from what I’ve heard, a very charismatic man. He didn’t start off talking about genocide. When he started the Circle, it was just a group that was supposed to be looking for ways to make peace with the Downworld. Not murder or genocide. We didn’t find out until after you were born that his ultimate goal was eliminating all demon-blooded beings from the planet.”

“And that’s when we left,” Robert piped up. “We had been trying to find a way out before when we first noticed things going in a direction we weren’t sure about. Then you were born, and there were some…statements made that kept us where we were. When we found out what he was really planning, though, your mother had just discovered she was pregnant with Izzy, and we knew we couldn’t stay any longer. Neither of you deserved to be brought up in a world where that man was in charge of things.”

He paused then and glanced at Maryse before continuing. “We chose to throw ourselves on the mercy of the Clave. Everything we knew about Valentine, we told them. They allowed us to remove our runes and exiled us to this Institute.”

Alec shook his head. “That’s part of what I don’t understand. Why did you get ‘exiled’ into a leadership position of the third-largest Institute in the world while Hodge was basically imprisoned here?”

Maryse tilted her head in the barest nod. “We requested his presence here,” she said. “We thought it would be better for him here than locked in the Gard. He was our friend, but he waited much longer than we did to leave and beg mercy from the Clave. His punishment was different.”

“I see,” Alec said. He didn’t have much else to say to that. The Clave did what it would, regardless of fairness and equality.

Robert cleared his throat as the silence stretched. “So, Alec, that’s only part of the reason we’re here.”

Alec knew where this was heading. “Oh?” he prompted.

“Your mother and I have been recalled to Idris with all of the former Circle members,” Robert said. “And you’re being named Acting Head.”

Alec thought he saw a glimmer of pride on his face, though he wasn’t sure why. It wasn’t like Alec hadn’t been Acting Head for years every time his parents left to go play politics in Alicante – despite being semi-exiled – or at one of the other Institutes around the world.

He nodded slowly at his parents. “All right. How long will you be away?” he asked.

Maryse and Robert exchanged a look.

“You don’t understand, Alec,” Maryse said. “We’ve been permanently recalled to Alicante, regardless of how the others are handled. We’ll be coordinating the rotating assignments for the short-term, but once everything is settled with Valentine, we’ll be in administrative roles at the Academy.”

Both of Alec’s eyebrows lifted. “Oh? They’re reopening the Academy?”

Over the last two decades, the number of new Shadowhunters had dwindled severely, making an entire Academy impractical. Instead, students had rotated through the various Institutes, training with others in their age group and learning from active Shadowhunters, practically in the field. To hear that they were possibly reopening the Academy was a sign that things were moving in the right direction.

“Yes. Now that the Cup has been returned, the Clave has decided to begin recruiting mundanes. They’re hoping to have the first class of Ascension candidates within the next few months,” Robert said.

“This is actually why you want me to marry Aline Penhallow, isn’t it?” Alec asked abruptly, wanting the matter on the table so they could actually discuss it thoroughly.

Maryse nodded. “Yes. The Clave won’t name you Head of the Institute if you’re unmarried.” She sighed and looked at Robert again for a moment. “And it must be someone whose family has not been associated with the Circle,” she added.

Alec said nothing for a long moment. “They do realize I’ve been Acting Head for the majority of the last decade, don’t they?”

“It doesn’t matter, Alec,” Robert chimed in. “You need to be married to be the Head of the Institute.”

“I’m sure there have been unmarried Heads before,” Alec scoffed. “That can’t be the only reason.”

Maryse grimaced. “While there have been unmarried Heads in the past, it’s been literally centuries since the last one, Alec. The work of an Institute is too much for any one person to handle.”

She conveniently ignored his incredulous expression and continued talking.

“It’s mostly due to our involvement with the Circle. They need to be sure that the Institute is partially controlled by someone without any connections to Valentine. They want to erase him and his taint from our people.”

Alec had heard enough. “And what about me? I’m just supposed to marry someone I don’t know and don’t love so they can feel better about naming me Head of the Institute when I’ve been essentially fulfilling that role all these years?”

“It’s not about you, Alec,” Robert started.

Maryse stood abruptly and started pacing the room. “Do you think you’re the first to be trapped in a loveless marriage for duty?” she asked, voice harsh as she paced.

The awkwardness in the room skyrocketed as Alec glanced at his father, only to see him looking down at his clasped hands. He knew their relationship was one of political convenience, and, as far as he knew, neither had ever met the one person they loved fiercely.

The silence again lingered in the room, but neither of his parents was moving to break it this time. Alec looked between them, noticing the slightly stricken look on his mother’s face as she seemed to realize what she’d said in the presence of her husband.

Alec cleared his throat. “I’ve met someone,” he murmured.

Both of his parents swiveled their attention to him. “Oh, Alec,” his mother breathed, her face shining for a moment.

Her expression honestly startled Alec. He hadn’t thought she’d feel this way about him being in a relationship.

“Who is she?” Maryse asked, moving over to perch on the coffee table in front of Alec. “We can always rearrange things with the wedding, of course. We’ll need to talk to the Penhallows,” she began and started rattling off a list of things they would need to do, looking at Robert intermittently as she spoke.

“Mother!” Alec finally yelled, having tried to get her attention for the better part of her list.

“There’s no need to shout, Alec. I’m right here.”

Alec sighed. “Mother…the person I met is not what you…or the Clave…would call…appropriate.”

Maryse frowned. “I don’t understand. Does her family have an affiliation with Valentine?”

Alec shook his head. “No…definitely not. Um.” He stood, unable to sit still any longer, and practically jumped over the chair to escape his mother. “Um.”

“Alec?” Robert asked, looking at him with concern.

Finally, Alec stopped pacing and stood behind the chair he’d just been sitting in, holding onto it for support. “The person I’ve met is a man. He’s a Warlock.”

Both of his parents stared for several long moments, clearly unsure how to respond to what he’d said.

“I’m gay,” he added, just to be clear and give them another nail in his coffin.

“Well, I mean…” Robert started. “It could just be a phase, couldn’t it?”

“No, dad. I’m gay. I’ve always been gay.”

“Alexander Gideon Lightwood. A warlock? This is unacceptable!” Maryse said, standing and moving closer to him. “You will not dishonor our family this way!”

Now, Alec was also becoming angry. “Me being in love will dishonor our family?” he asked, scoffing. “You don’t think that’s a bit hypocritical, considering you’ve done enough of dishonoring the family already?”

He knew that was too much the instant before Maryse’s hand impacted against his cheek, turning his whole head to the side. Alec stared in that direction for a long moment before turning back to face his mother. “Right.”

Maryse was seething, but he could see the regret on her face for having slapped him. He didn’t particularly care.

“You will end your relationship with this….Warlock,” she said, spitting out the word like it was a vile taste in her mouth. “And you will marry Aline Penhallow next week. It’s not up for negotiation, Alexander.”

Alec started backing away to the door. “I’m not marrying someone I don’t love. And I’m definitely not marrying a woman.”

“You will, Alexander!” Maryse shouted.

He huffed a mirthless laugh. “No,” he said firmly.

Despite everything, he felt more empowered than ever before. Coming out to his parents had lifted a huge burden off his shoulders, even though he wished it had gone better. Alec had the fleeting thought that the conversation probably would have gone better had he been dating a male Nephilim rather than a Downworlder, but he didn’t care. Magnus was everything to him. They would understand that, eventually.

His parents were staring at him, speechless at his blatant refusal to do as ordered. Cowardly as it might be, he took that moment to duck out of the office, still hearing his mother’s screech, followed by a thud and shatter as what he thought was the ugly red vase that had been on the table between the chairs hit the wall.

He cleared his throat and smiled wanly at the Shadowhunter walking past, staring at him wide-eyed. “Family,” he said and shook his head before taking off towards the living quarters.

* * *

A knock at the door interrupted Alec’s contemplation of the ceiling. He sighed and pushed himself up, wondering who had come to see him in his room. Usually, if it was one of his siblings, they didn’t bother waiting after giving a token knock at the door before barging in. Whoever this was, it wasn’t likely to be one of them based on past experience.

He climbed off the bed and looked at the door just as another knock came. Opening it didn’t really appeal to him, but he didn’t see how he could avoid doing so, especially if he was officially the Acting Head now and his parents were no longer in charge. That was a heady thought.

Grabbing the doorknob, he pulled it open to see who his visitor was. His eyebrows lifted slightly. Alec had been contemplating the ceiling longer than he’d realized.

“Lydia,” he said in greeting. “I didn’t realize you were already back from Alicante.” He stepped back and held the door open to let her in. “Did everything go all right with the transfer of the Cup?”

Stepping into the room, Lydia nodded and heaved a relieved breath. “Yes, no problems. I’m so glad it’s back in the hands of the Clave and no longer our responsibility,” she admitted.

“Absolutely. It’s…a big responsibility to have one of the Mortal Instruments in the Institute. I’m glad it’s not here any longer, too.” He stepped back and gestured at the small table and chairs he had in the corner of his room. “Have a seat. What brings you by?”

“I heard there was a bit of a…disagreement…between you and your mother this morning.” She smirked at him. “Something about a screeching racket followed by a crash? Care to share?”

Alec sighed and slumped back in his chair. “I can’t believe you heard about that. I thought it was pretty quiet, overall.”

She shook her head, smirk still firmly in place. “Oh, no. The entire Operations Center was whispering about it when I came through. What happened?”

“I told my parents I’m in a gay relationship with a Warlock. My mother didn’t take it well.”

Lydia’s mouth dropped open before she grinned at him. “Good for you! Way to take charge, Alec!”

Despite himself, Alec chuckled slightly. “Yes, it’s out there, now.” He sighed, then, his good mood evaporating as quickly as it had arrived. “But they still expect me to marry Aline.”

“I see,” Lydia said, slumping back in her own seat with a grimace. “Even though…”

Alec nodded. “Yeah, even though I told them I love him.”

“Wow. That’s rough, Alec.”

“They said it’s because the Clave wants me married before they’ll give me the Institute.” He shook his head again. “I don’t see why I need to be married to take over officially.”

“Clave leadership is still mostly the older generations, Alec. They’re traditionalists.” She shrugged and continued. “Plus, running an Institute is too much for one person to manage. I know you’ve been doing it for the most part while your parents weren’t here, but I’m just saying, I can see why they want it to be a pair.”

Alec shook his head. “I don’t have a problem with having a co-Head; I just don’t want to have to be married to them.”

Lydia nodded. “I hear you. Being married to my co-Head was never supposed to be a problem for me,” she said, a bittersweet smile on her face.

Alec knew she was referring to John Monteverde, her fiance, who’d been killed in a demon raid before they could get married. They had been in line to take over the Lisbon Institute from his parents. Alec cocked his head to one side as a thought occurred to him. He stared at Lydia for a long moment.

“What?” she asked slowly, frowning at him.

“Just a thought,” he said. “Do you still want to run an Institute?”

“Alec, I’m not going to marry you knowing you’re in love with someone else,” she said, smiling softly at him.

He waved that away. “No, I know. I don’t want to marry you, either,” he said, returning the smile to take any sting from the words. “But what if we could still be co-Heads of the Institute?”

Lydia’s eyes widened, and she pulled in a breath. “Well, that would be amazing, honestly. I do still want to run an Institute. It’s still one of my goals. I just thought it was out of reach because, unless I marry for a political alliance, it’s not going to happen.

“As to your suggestion.” She shook her head. “I don’t know if the Clave would go for that. They are traditionalists, remember?”

Alec sat forward and pinned her with a serious stare. “But are you up for trying?” he asked. Then, before she could answer, he stood before her, holding out a hand. “Lydia Branwell, would you do me the great honor of trying to serve as co-Heads of the New York Institute with me?”

Lydia rolled her eyes at his antics, but he could tell she was thinking about the situation. Finally, she nodded slowly and accepted his hand. “Yes. Let’s try.” A smile blossomed on her face. “If they go for this, it would shake up a lot of tradition.”

Alec returned the grin. “It would be good for us as a people to shake up a lot of tradition.” He paused then and gave her a serious look. “I have to warn you, if they go for this, it’s just the start of the shake-up. I have so many ideas of things we need to do.”

“That’s what I like about you, Alec. You’re solution-oriented.”

“I try.”

* * *

Chapter 9

The next few days passed relatively quietly.

Alec was trying not to envision what calamity might happen next. His parents had left without speaking to him again after the meeting in the Head’s office. Alec didn’t particularly mind that, but it was eating at him, a bit, that they hadn’t been able to be supportive like he’d hoped. Instead, they’d reacted mostly like he’d feared they would. At least they hadn’t decided to just disown him on the spot or something.

Jace had been generally grumpy and melancholy for those days since the Fairchilds had left for Idris. Alec hadn’t interacted much with Clary after she and her mother had arrived, but he would have needed to be blind to not see how connected Jace and Clary had become after such a short time. If it lasted, Alec would be happy for his brother. Jace needed a real emotional connection with someone that loved him back. Of course, his siblings loved him, but Alec knew that Jace needed more than they could give him.

Alec was just glad he’d gotten over the weird crush he’d had on Jace. Looking back, he could see how Jace was a safe choice for young Alec to latch on to. There was no chance of anything happening there, so there was no chance Alec would need to come out about his sexuality. In retrospect, he was still glad he’d said no to becoming Jace’s parabatai. He and Izzy were a much better fit than Alec would have been. While he thought he’d like to have a bond that intense with someone, Alec wasn’t sure how well he would have handled all of Jace’s romantic entanglements. Izzy didn’t seem to care. If anything, she was right there with just as many of her own entanglements.

While Alec was by no means a prude, he also thought he was a more private person than either of his siblings. And he was fine with that. He was also fine with whatever – and whoever – they chose to do in their own time. He just wanted them to be happy. It probably said more about him that his idea of happiness was making a family with Magnus. Alec’s thoughts drifted to the previous night that he’d finally been able to spend away from the Institute with Magnus. It had been such a relief to be with Magnus that Alec had thought that he fully felt at home at the loft, more so than he felt at the Institute. It had come as something of a surprise to realize he’d been feeling that way for quite a while, but when he’d chased the thought down, it had occurred to him that Magnus was home for him, not a physical location.

Next to him, someone cleared their throat, and Alec jumped, startled out of his thoughts.

“You’re thinking about him again, aren’t you?” Lydia asked quietly, giving him a knowing look.

“Hmm? What makes you say that?” he asked, looking around to see who was nearby.

Lydia smiled at him. “You just have a particular expression on your face whenever you’re daydreaming about Magnus.”

Alec cleared his throat. “I was not…daydreaming. I was just. I was thinking.” He looked back at the monitor and away from her laughing expression. “Anyway. Did you finish the thing?” he asked, trying to change the subject.

He and Lydia had been working on their proposal for the Clave for the last several days. They’d gone through the records of the various Institutes around the world to see what kind of leadership pairs had been in place and the general statistics of their organizations. It had not surprised them that the vast majority of those leaders had been married couples. What surprised them was how the tenure of the pairs had changed over time.

Centuries earlier, it hadn’t been uncommon for Institute leadership to remain with the same pair for more than half a century. In recent history, most Institute leadership was only in place for an average of twenty years. They hadn’t been able to find a reason for the change in duration, but it wasn’t their main focal area, so they’d put it to the side and refocused their attention.

Lydia nodded. “Yes. It’s ready. Have a look, make any comments you think are necessary, and we can send it off.”

“Will do,” Alec replied and turned back to the monitor.

Lydia didn’t leave. Instead, she asked, “Did you hear from your parents yet?”

“No,” he said, sighing and shaking his head. “I sent them another message earlier to make sure they understood that there will be no wedding happening here tomorrow, but I still haven’t heard anything back from them.”

“Do you think they’ll just turn up here?” she asked, somewhat incredulous.

“Knowing them, probably,” Alec said.

“Excuse me,” Andrew Underhill said, approaching the terminal Alec and Lydia were standing next to. “Sorry to interrupt.”

Alec shook his head. “It’s fine. What’s the problem?”

“Not so much a problem as a visitor?” Underhill said, looking befuddled. “We were just notified that Aline Penhallow will be arriving from Alicante shortly.”

“Huh.” Alec rocked back on his heels and crossed his arms. “I guess they are going to try to push through with this farce, after all,” he muttered. “Thanks, Andrew. I’ll meet her.”

“Yes, sir,” Underhill said and left.

Rubbing a hand across his face, Alec sighed. “I’m going to take her to the office and see what she thinks of all this. And then I’ll tell her that I can’t marry her, and we’ll go from there.”

Lydia quirked an eyebrow and gave him a sympathetic smile. “Good luck. Let me know if you need anything.”

Alec returned the smile with a nod and headed towards the portal room to greet Aline when she came through. He arrived just as the portal deposited her into New York.

“Aline,” he said, smiling in greeting at the slim Asian woman that emerged from the portal. He and Aline had always been friendly. If the situation had been otherwise, he might have gone along with the marriage.

“Hi, Alec!” she said brightly and moved forward to pull him into a hug.

Alec awkwardly returned the hug. “Hi, Aline. Nice to see you. What are you doing here?” he asked, smiling as he said it.

“Well, I came to talk to my supposed fiancé!” she said, winking at him.

“Hmm.”

“Exactly. Let’s chat?” she asked, wrapping an arm around his elbow and guiding him towards the door.

Alec nodded and let her continue to hang on his arm all the way to his office. He closed the door behind him and gestured over towards the seating area.

“Would you like a drink?” he offered, walking over to the side table and picking up the water pitcher there.

Aline nodded. “Thank you.”

Alec brought two glasses over and handed one to her before taking a seat, as well. “So…” he prompted.

“I’m not going to marry you,” she said, bluntly and straight to the point. It was always one of the things he’d appreciated about Aline.

“Good. I’m not going to marry you, either,” Alec replied, smiling at her.

“Phew, glad we got that out of the way.” She grinned at him. “I’m in love with a woman,” Aline said and took a sip of her water.

Alec choked on the water he’d been drinking and sputtered for a moment, trying to regain his composure and breath. “Oh?” he said, still coughing. “That’s an interesting coincidence. I’m in love with a man.”

Aline quirked an eyebrow at him, and her grin returned. She’d seemed a bit nonplussed by his choking fit. “Oh, really? What are the odds?” she asked, her expression going mildly suspicious.

Alec sighed, realization dawning. “Our parents must have known before they came up with this ploy.”

Grimacing, Aline nodded. “I think you’re right. I finally came out to my mother yesterday, and she was not exactly happy about it. Before I flat-out refused to marry you, she actually suggested that we ‘join forces’ and marry for the politics. Regardless, she wants me to keep my relationship with Helen to myself and not advertise it. I think she’s still trying to figure out how to handle this politically, but I know she’ll eventually be happy for me.”

“My mother threw a vase at the door,” Alec said, giving her a sardonic grin in return. “But I think that was mostly to me telling her I’m in love with a Warlock.”

Aline smirked at him and held a fist out towards him. “Helen’s half-Seelie,” she said.

Alec rolled his eyes slightly and tapped her fist with his own. “Go, Team Downworlder?”

Laughing, Aline nodded. “Something like that, yeah.” She sobered a moment later and looked down at the glass of water in her hands. “My mom said you won’t get the Institute if you don’t get married.”

“Yeah, I heard that, too.”

“What are you going to do?” she asked, taking another sip of her water.

“Lydia and I will propose that she be my co-Head to the Clave. We’ve been working on it for the last few days, and I think we’re just about done.” He paused, remembering belatedly that Aline’s mother, Jia, was on the Council. “Do you think your mom might support it?”

Aline raised her eyebrows and tilted her head as she considered. “I don’t know. Maybe?” she asked, frowning. “She’s not as…bound by tradition as some of the older generations. She married a man that’s not Chinese, and from what she’s said, it was quite the scandal at the time. It’s also part of why I’m not in line to run the Beijing Institute.”

“Because you’re only half-Chinese?” Alec asked.

“Maybe. One of my cousins took over.” Aline shrugged. “If I’d been older when my parents decided to move to Idris, it might have been me, but who knows?”

Alec nodded. “So, she’s all right with us not getting married?”

Aline shrugged again. “I mean, I think she’d honestly prefer it if we did get married, but when I told her I was in love with someone else, she backed way down. She married for love, and I know she wants that for me if it’s at all possible.”

Sighing, Alec let his head drop back against the headrest. “My mother is so caught up in restoring the family name. I don’t think she cares about love.”

“I’m sorry,” Aline said, giving him a sympathetic look.

He shook his head. “It’s really not your fault. I know she loves me, at least on some level, but both of them have always been so caught up in being perfect.” Alec sighed. “At least now I know why. But I’m not the one who caused the problem, and I’m not going to sacrifice my life to fix it.”

Aline grinned. “Good for you, Alec. I’ll help in whatever way I can…except marriage,” she said, winking. “So, your proposal. Tell me more.”

Alec spent the next few minutes outlining the proposal. It was pretty straightforward. He and Lydia would serve as co-Heads in the same way that any married couple did, except they wouldn’t be married, just both vested as Head.

Looking at him thoughtfully, Aline nodded. “I can see it. I think it would work. We need to update things for today, anyway,” she added. “I think there are others on the Council who would support it, too. They’re not all stuck in the past. Your best bet, though, probably would be to get support before you officially submit the proposal. Do you want to give me a copy, and I can have my mom look it over?”

Alec nodded. “I’d appreciate that. Might as well take advantage of having a might-have-been mother-in-law with connections,” he joked.

Aline cackled.

* * *

The gold sheets pooled around Alec’s waist, resting just above where the slope of his ass began. It presented a tantalizing treat for Magnus as he leaned against the door frame for a moment, taking in the miles of runed skin glowing in the gentle light of dawn. His lover was still fast asleep with his arms curled around the pillow under his head. It was both adorable and gratifying that Alec could sleep so deeply in Magnus’ bed. When they had first started sleeping together, Alec woke at the slightest movement. Now, he usually slept until he woke naturally or until Magnus deliberately disturbed him, generally with something other than sleep on the agenda.

Magnus glanced at the time and saw that there were still several hours before Alec even needed to think of heading back to the Institute. Walking back to his side of the bed, Magnus stripped out of his robe, tossing it carelessly to the side as he slid back between the sheets. He didn’t bother keeping his movements subtle, but Alec only stirred enough to wrap an arm around Magnus’ waist and transfer his head from the pillow to Magnus’ chest.

He was doing his gentle snuffle-snore again moments later.

Smiling to himself, Magnus settled back against his pillow, enjoying the closeness and running his fingers lightly through Alec’s dark hair. He’d been alive for so long, but this was the first time he could remember ever being this truly happy. And most of that was thanks to this angel-blooded creature practically drooling on him in his sleep. Magnus grinned at the tousled head under his fingers.

His hands slowly started drifting lower, gently skimming over the skin on Alexander’s shoulders. They lingered slightly longer on the dark-colored marks etched into the skin; he knew they were more sensitive than the rest of Alexander’s skin from all of their time exploring each other.

Alexander’s arm tightened around his waist sometime later.

“Good morning,” he mumbled into Magnus’ chest.

“Good morning, darling. Did I wake you?” Magnus asked, only very mildly concerned that he had.

With a shake of his head, Alexander dropped a kiss below where his head rested. “Doesn’t matter. Great way to wake up,” he said, voice low and raspy with sleep.

“Oh, I think I can make waking up even better,” Magnus replied with a grin and leaned in to kiss his love, morning breath and all.

* * *

Much later, Alec and Magnus had finally made it out of the bedroom. They were standing in the kitchen, drinking coffee and picking at an array of breakfast foods that Magnus had conjured. Alec had long since given up on suggesting they actually cook and just let Magnus do his thing, with the promise that payment had been left as the items were from Downworlder establishments that catered to Warlocks with standing arrangements.

“Do you think your mother will actually turn up today, then?” Magnus asked, playing with the scrambled eggs on his plate.

Alec shrugged. “Probably. She can be very stubborn.”

Magnus shot him a dry look. “I wondered where you got that from,” he teased gently.

“Mmhmm,” was all Alec responded.

“What will you do if she does?”

The Shadowhunter shrugged. “I mean…all I can really do is tell her again, right? I’ll keep reiterating that I don’t plan to marry someone I don’t love until it eventually gets through to her.” He paused, then, and looked at Magnus as a thought occurred to him.

“Do…” Alec started, then stopped, wondering if this was the right track to take or if Magnus would feel like he was being used to make a point.

“Do…?” Magnus prompted, eyebrows raised in query.

“Never mind.”

“No, no. What were you going to say?”

Alec rolled his eyes self-consciously. “It’s probably a terrible idea.”

Magnus stared at him. “I won’t be able to judge that until I actually hear the idea, darling.”

“You could come by the Institute if you’d like,” Alec murmured, taking a bite of toast to avoid saying anything else for the moment.

“I could come by the Institute, yes. For what purpose, though?” Magnus asked, obviously trying to figure out what Alec was talking about.

“I don’t want to hide our relationship anymore, Magnus,” Alec finally said after a long pause. He looked at the Warlock, who was staring at him with wide eyes. “Maybe the only way she’ll really understand is if I show her.”

Magnus blinked at him. “You want to show your mother…me?”

Alec lifted a shoulder in a half-shrug. “I mean, kissing you in front of her would make it pretty clear, right?”

“You want to kiss me in front of your mother?”

Alec honestly couldn’t tell if Magnus was appalled or intrigued. It could go either way, judging by the expression on his face.

“Yes?” Alec asked, testing the waters.

Magnus laughed.

Alec frowned.

Getting control of himself, Magnus looked at Alec, delight still on his face. “Darling, I’d be happy to stop by the Institute to kiss you in front of your mother to make a statement. Just let me know when to arrive, and I’ll be there with bells on.”

“Bells might be overkill?” Alec suggested, and Magnus laughed again, this time with fondness on his face.

“Yes, darling. No literal bells.”

* * *

Chapter 10

“Sir,” Underhill said quietly from next to Alec.

Alec sighed, knowing what was coming before Underhill even said another word. “She’s coming?” he asked, just as quietly.

“Yes, sir. We just got the notification from Alicante. They’ll be coming through the portal shortly.”

“I suppose I should be there to greet her and hopefully put a stop to whatever nonsense she’s planning.” He pulled his phone out to send a text to Magnus and was mid-message when Underhill’s words caught up with him.

“Wait,” he said, stopping the other man from walking further away. “They?” he asked.

Underhill frowned in confusion. “Yes, sir. Your mother and a guest.”

It was Alec’s turn to be confused, and he nodded. “Thank you,” he said and returned to his message, completing it before he followed after Underhill.

The portal room was quiet when Alec arrived, but it didn’t stay that way for long. His mother stepped through right on schedule, followed almost immediately by a woman about Alec’s age. She had a bored look on her face, and Alec glanced from her to his mother and back again. He had no idea who the woman was.

“Mother,” Alec greeted, crossing his arms over his chest. He knew it was standoffish, but he was past caring. “You’re here.”

“Hello, Alexander,” Maryse said, smiling at him with something that looked like challenge in her eyes. “Of course, I’m here. What kind of mother would I be to miss her son’s wedding day?”

Alec sighed and shook his head. “We’ve already discussed this, mother. I’m not getting married today.”

Maryse tilted her head and gestured at the woman next to him. “This is your fiancée, Rebecca Whiterose.” She placed a hand on one of Rebecca’s shoulders and urged her closer to Alec and away from the front of the portal. “Rebecca, this is my son, Alexander. Why don’t the two of you take a few moments to talk,” she said, just as the portal rippled again and people started flowing through. “I will begin coordinating the arrangements.”

Alec looked incredulously at the stream of people moving past him, all of them pulling carts loaded with boxes behind them. They didn’t pause, just pushed through the portal room and out the door as if they knew exactly where they were going. He looked back at his mother. “What the…I’m not getting married today!”

Maryse glowered at Alec. “You will do as you’re told, Alexander. You do recall the consequences if you do not, I presume?”

With that, Maryse strode from the room, heels clicking heavily with purpose. Alec stared after her before looking back at the poor woman who’d been dumped in front of him. His smile was wan as he looked at her. None of this was her fault, after all.

“I’m not getting married today,” he told her.

Rebecca cocked her head to one side and looked at him, then back at the stream of people still pulling carts through the room. “I’m not sure I believe that,” she said.

Alec sighed again and desperately wished he’d just stayed at the loft with Magnus. His phone buzzed with a text, and he pulled it out to see what the message was, hoping that it was Magnus saying he’d arrived. Instead, his hopes were dashed as Magnus had been called to an emergency by one of his Warlocks and would be there as soon as possible.

Closing his eyes for a moment, Alec could feel a tension headache brewing. He looked at Rebecca again. “Let’s talk,” he said and gestured for her to walk with him as he headed towards his office.

* * *

Alec saw Rebecca back through the portal with her parents. He ground his teeth, wondering how his mother could have picked Rebecca in the first place. She seemed nice enough, but there was something vapid about her that Alec couldn’t get his head around. Her parents were just as bad, but at least they took his no for an answer and realized they couldn’t force him to marry their daughter, no matter what his mother thought. They were angry as they left and embarrassed that this was happening. At least they were not going to be in front of a crowd as it happened, though.

He left the portal room and headed towards the main reception hall to see if he could track Maryse down there. The number of people running about wearing nice clothes was disconcerting, to say the least. He wondered how his mother had managed to get so many people here in less than two weeks.

Staggering to a halt, Alec looked around the reception room with wide eyes. It was practically full of people in wedding finery standing about in small groups and seated in the chairs that had been set up in two sections with an aisle down the middle. There were flowers on the ends of the rows bordering the aisle. Incredulous, again, Alec looked around for his mother and spotted her talking to Imogen Herondale, the Inquisitor of all people.

She had invited the Inquisitor of the Council to his non-existent wedding?

Alec’s brain stuttered to a halt.

This was a fiasco.

Maryse spotted him and left the Inquisitor, walking swiftly to Alec’s side.

“Why aren’t you dressed?” she hissed, grabbing his elbow and trying to steer him back out of the hall.

Alec stared at her, his mouth opened in astonishment. “Mother. What did you do?” he hissed back, wrenching his arm free from her grip.

“You are getting married, Alec.”

“Well, no. I’m not, actually. You would know that if you bothered to listen to me.”

The argument continued in this vein for several minutes. He knew they were drawing attention from the assembled guests, but he couldn’t have cared less. This wasn’t his fault. A murmur rippled over the crowd, and Alec glanced at them, seeing their attention behind him at the entrance to the hall.

Magnus had arrived.

Alec smiled despite the argument he was still having with his mother, watching as the Warlock drew closer to their position.

“Warlock Bane,” Maryse spat, her expression going cold and ugly when she saw Magnus. “What are you doing here?”

Magnus smiled with false politeness, inclining his head in greeting. “Ms. Lightwood. Delightful to see you,” he said, and Alec heard the ire lacing his words. “I’m here for Alexander.”

Maryse switched her furious gaze to Alec. “What is this, Alec?”

“A demonstration, mother, since you seem incapable of actually understanding the words I’ve been trying to say for the last two weeks,” Alec said, reaching out his hand towards Magnus, who took it without hesitation. “I’d like you to meet Magnus Bane, the High Warlock of Brooklyn and the man I’m in love with.”

His words echoed faintly in the hush that had consumed the large room. Magnus was grinning next to him, and Alec couldn’t help but smile as well. This was definitely a fuck-it moment if ever there was one.

“Don’t you dare,” Maryse snarled in a low voice as Alec turned towards Magnus.

Their eyes locked, and Magnus’ expression went soft and real as they leaned towards each other, Alec’s hand coming up to cup his cheek in a gentle caress as their lips met. The kiss deepened until their surroundings faded away for the barest moment, then Alec was brought back to himself by the shocked murmurs of the crowd gathered for his supposed wedding.

He eased back, dropping one last chaste kiss on Magnus’ lips, before smiling at him. Alec really didn’t care what the fallout from his actions might be at that moment. As long as he had Magnus, he thought he could probably deal with just about anything…including de-runing.

“What have you done, Alec?” Maryse said, her voice laced with shock and dismay. “You’ve ruined everything.”

“Enough, mother,” Alec said, letting his hand drift down to take Magnus’ hand. “Enough.” He shook his head, looking at her with all the disappointment of a child who’d never lived up to his parent’s expectations realizing he never would. “I’m not living your life. I’m not fixing your mistakes. This is my life, and it’s short enough without abandoning the love of my life for politics.”

He fixed her with a sad look and shook his head. “I’m so sorry for you that you don’t understand that.”

Maryse stared at him, her face rigid with fury before she drew herself up to her full height and stormed away, leaving Alec standing before a room full of wedding guests and his father. Robert was looking at him with an unreadable expression.

“I’ll talk to her, Alec,” Robert said, then reached out and put a hand on his son’s shoulder. It was surprisingly supportive. Robert gave him a tight smile before following after his wife.

“Are you all right?” Magnus asked, sotto voce.

Alec nodded and tossed him a quick smile as Jia Penhallow approached. He was surprised to see her.

“Councilor Penhallow,” he greeted with a nod.

“Mr. Lightwood. This was…quite the display,” Jia said with a raised eyebrow. He could tell that she didn’t entirely approve.

Alec shrugged. “I obviously wasn’t getting through with words.”

Jia inclined her head. “Our presence here does make that clear. Another method might have been preferable, however, given your current circumstances.” She smiled to take the sting out of her words.

“That said, I did want to let you know that we are discussing the petition you submitted to name Lydia Branwell as your co-Head. You did a comprehensive job with the research, and, while it is quite out of the ordinary, there is a significant portion of the council that favors the move for various reasons.”

Jia paused then and glanced briefly at Magnus before returning her attention to Alec. “I’m not sure how much impact today’s actions will have on that decision, but I will do what I can to mitigate. True love is such a rare thing for our people, so that should weigh in your favor.”

“Thank you,” Alec said. “I appreciate whatever you’re able to do on my behalf. The Institute, the people in it, and all the mundanes and Downworlders we protect are among my highest priorities, but living a lie would only serve as a detriment, overall.”

Jia nodded again, her gaze understanding. “Well, for the moment, you remain Acting Head of the New York Institute. We will notify you once a final decision has been reached. Gentlemen,” she said, nodding to both of them once more before joining the stream of guests leaving.

While he had no regrets, the enormity of what he’d just done started to sink in, and his grip around Magnus’ hand tightened. Alec tugged slightly and pulled Magnus back and out a side door, away from the stream of people leaving. They walked through several side hallways until they reached the living quarters. He was avoiding his office for the moment because Lydia had been working in there, and he selfishly wanted the comfort of his space at the Institute. Seeing Magnus actually in his space was another point in favor of the location.

He ushered Magnus through the door and then leaned against it as he closed it behind him. All the breath rushed out of him in a woosh. “Wow. I wasn’t expecting to do that with such a large audience.”

Magnus stepped into his space and wrapped his arms around Alec’s waist. “It was definitely a statement,” he said, smiling slightly.

Alec felt unworthy of the adoration in his gaze and promised himself that he’d always do his best to deserve it. He leaned forward to press another kiss to Magnus’ lips, wondering if he would ever have a real wedding, hopefully with the man in his arms. The kiss grew more heated the longer they lingered, and Alec started backing Magnus slowly towards his bed. He was anticipating the sight of the other man in his sheets more than he’d thought he would.

A sharp rap on the door broke the mood, and Magnus dropped his head to Alec’s shoulder for a brief moment before letting him go to answer the door.

Jace stood on the other side, a serious look on his face.

“What is it?” Alec asked, feeling Magnus step up next to him.

“We just got word. The City of Bones was attacked this morning. Most of the Silent Brothers that were present are dead.” He paused and glanced at Magnus as the Warlock gasped. “The Soul Sword was taken.”

“Valentine?” Alec asked, already knowing the answer.

Jace nodded.

Alec pushed past him into the corridor, the other two following close behind him as he made his way to the Operations Center. “Does the Clave need anything from us?”

“Not at the moment. They were sending in teams to investigate and look for survivors.”

The Operations Center was a hub of controlled chaos when Alec, Jace, and Magnus entered. Most of it was the regular comings and goings of one of the largest Institutes in the world. The rest was an undercurrent, more Shadowhunters than usual in the Ops Center or training. Alec understood how they felt. An attack on the City of Bones was an attack on part of the core of Nephilim society and history.

Stopping at the central table, he exchanged a grim look with Lydia and joined her in the perusal of the current activity map of the city. Underhill was standing at her side, and Alec looked between him and Jace. “Let’s increase patrols. We know Valentine has been active in the city. Everyone needs to be on the lookout for any signs of him or Circle members.”

Jace and Underhill nodded and left for another display, already discussing which teams had been off patrol long enough to send out again.

Lydia looked at Magnus. “I’ve contacted the leaders of the Werewolves and Vampires to let them know and asked them to inform us if they encounter any Shadowhunters that are not ours or come across anything related to Valentine. Could you spread the word among the Warlocks?” she asked.

Magnus nodded and pulled out his phone. Lydia raised an eyebrow. “What? Group text is faster than individual fire messages,” he said.

Alec’s mouth quirked in a small smile at the exchange. Magnus was right; sometimes, modern technology was more efficient than magic. He watched as the Warlock wandered away, texting furiously as his phone rang.

“How can we help?” Jocelyn Fairchild asked, standing at the other side of the table. Clary was hovering behind her and looking over to where Jace was still discussing the patrols with Underhill.

Alec looked between mother and daughter. “I didn’t realize you were here,” he said.

Jocelyn shrugged. “We took advantage of your mother’s wedding plans for you and came back to pick up more things from the apartment. Clary wanted to see Jace and touch base with one of her friends,” she explained.

Quirking an eyebrow, Alec glanced over at Jace and saw him sending moon eyes towards Clary. He managed to keep from heaving a sigh at how infatuated they were with each other and turned his attention back to Jocelyn. “Right now, we’re increasing patrols. If you want to join one of the teams, that should be fine, but I don’t think Clary’s ready for that yet. It’s been less than a week since she started her official training,” he replied.

Jocelyn smiled slightly. “I know,” she said, shaking her head and glancing at her daughter with fond exasperation in her expression.

Alec frowned as a shiver crawled up his spine. Goosebumps popped up all along his forearms, and pressure built in his ears like he’d changed altitude quickly. He swallowed, and the pressure in his ears burst, but he was left with the uncomfortable sensation that he should have been able to hear something.

“Did — ”

“Do you hear that?” Clary said, a heavy frown on her face. She’d reached out at some point to hold onto her mother, and she looked like she was having a hard time standing upright.

Alec frowned and looked around, but no one else seemed to have been affected by whatever it was. “What do you hear?” he asked, going with his instinct that he should have heard something.

She shook her head. “I…I don’t know. It sounds like screaming…”

“Oh…oh, no. He couldn’t…” Jocelyn muttered, staring at Clary and gripping her arm.

“Jocelyn?” Lydia asked, moving over to help with Clary.

Alec glanced around and saw that they’d garnered a great deal of attention from everyone in the Operations Center. “As you were!” he ordered, and most jumped and did as instructed. Some were still glancing in Clary’s direction, curiosity on their faces.

“Let’s get her to the Head’s office,” he said, walking around the table to their side.

Lydia glanced around, then back at Alec. “Yes, we don’t need to discuss this out here.”

With that, Jocelyn on one side and Jace on the other, the group escorted Clary to the office, depositing her on the couch. Alec and Lydia stood opposite them while Magnus took up a perch on the edge of the desk, looking on in concern.

“What was that?” Clary finally asked, looking mildly disoriented as she took the glass of water that Lydia handed her.

Jocelyn shifted at her side, gripping her hand tightly as she stared at her child, her face a morass of guilt, fear, and anger. Alec waited a moment, wondering if she was going to speak. When she didn’t, he crossed his arms over his chest. “Jocelyn? What do you know?” he prompted.

She looked up at him, then, and her expression tightened. “Valentine. He’s responsible for this,” she said through clenched teeth.

“What is ‘this’?” Lydia asked, her frustration becoming more apparent.

Jocelyn glanced away. “I didn’t know,” she insisted. “I suspected, but I didn’t know. And then I let it go when I was trying to keep hidden.” She stopped talking, drawing in quick breaths as a tear spilled over and down her cheek. Finally, Jocelyn looked back at Alec and Lydia. “I think Valentine has a captive Angel.”

The room seemed to pulse for a moment as the reality of her words sank in. Valentine had somehow managed to capture an Angel.

“Wait,” Alec said, his horror growing as he realized something. “Are you saying that he’s had an Angel captive for nearly twenty years?”

Jocelyn nodded. “Possibly longer,” she admitted. “I found out he was conducting experiments using Angel and Demon blood. He’d…” More tears started streaming down her face. “He’d tainted my baby boy with demon blood,” she whispered harshly as she shook her head.

“I have a brother?” Clary asked, her own voice low as she stared at her mother.

Jocelyn ignored Clary’s question as she continued. “I don’t know why he did that. It never made sense to me why he would do that, especially when I found out what the Soul Sword was capable of doing.”

“What do you mean? What is the Soul Sword capable of?” Alec asked, voice tense. The Soul Sword only compelled the truth from those who held it as far as he knew. He knew there were other things that the Silent Brothers could use, but it all seemed related to memory and honesty.

“Under the right circumstances,” Jocelyn began, looking like she was trying to remember, “a being with pure Angelic blood can activate the sword to destroy all beings with demon blood in its path. There was something else, but I don’t…oh. It can be activated by the touch of someone with pure Angel blood and a massive infusion of power, like being struck by lightning.”

She looked down at where her hand was clutching Clary’s. “If Jonathan hadn’t been killed in the fire…” she trailed off again, and her face shifted to horrified shock. “Oh. Oh, what…”

“Jocelyn?”

“Mom?”

Magnus straightened from where he’d been seated. He stared at Jocelyn, and Alec was surprised to see actual disgust on his face aimed at the woman before him. “If Valentine didn’t die in that fire, your…tainted…son probably didn’t either,” he said, spelling out the realization for the room.

“Then where is Jonathan?” Jocelyn gasped as she sucked in breaths between the sobs she couldn’t seem to stop. “What’s become of my son?”

Alec scrubbed a hand over his face and walked over to grab the box of tissues from the shelf behind his desk. He carried it over to Jocelyn and extended it to her. “We’ll do what we can to figure that out, but our main priority has to be the Soul Sword, and the Angel Valentine has captured. We have to stop him if he’s already got that much of what he needs to activate the Soul Sword.”

He just wished he knew where to start.

“I think we need more details about the Sword,” Lydia said.

“But the Brothers,” Jace started, voice trailing off as he shook his head at the tragedy they’d just suffered.

Lydia nodded. “Agreed. The Iron Sisters, however, would likely have just as much information on the Mortal Instruments as the Brotherhood. I’ll visit the Adamant Citadel and explain the situation. Perhaps they’ll be willing to help, given the circumstances.”

“Agreed,” Alec said, straightening. This was, if nothing else, at least a place to start. “Take Izzy with you. After Hodge, she’s our most experienced with weapons. Jace, keep working with Underhill on patrol rotations. We need to stay at a heightened status for a while, and I don’t want anyone getting too worn out.”

Lydia and Jace both nodded, acknowledging his orders. He looked to Jocelyn and Clary, both still looking a bit shell-shocked. “The two of you should probably head back to Alicante.”

Jocelyn immediately shook her head. “No, I need to start looking for my son. I need to know what happened to him,” she said, looking at Alec with pleading and defiance on her tear-streaked face.

“We were going to stop by our apartment, too, and pick up a few things,” Clary added quietly.

Alec sighed. “Fine. You can go to the apartment for your things, but, Jocelyn, it’s been almost fifteen years since the fire. How will you even start to look for him?” he asked. Alec wasn’t totally unsympathetic, but there were so many moving pieces right now that he needed to try to reel this in.

Jocelyn glanced briefly at Clary. “I have some of his baby things and a lock of his hair,” she said.

Jace perked up. “We could use that to track him, then. Izzy and I can do it.”

“And Warlock tracking is better than even Parabatai tracking,” Magnus added.

“Right. Well, collect what you need and get back here, all right?” he asked, giving her a serious look. He wasn’t actually asking for her agreement, just that she acknowledged his orders.

Jocelyn nodded. “Understood. And thank you.”

Alec acknowledged her thanks with a nod of his own and glanced around at everyone still hanging out in his office.

“We all have things to do, so let’s do them,” he said, essentially shooing them out the door.

Magnus was the last one still in his office, and Alec smiled at him. “I’ll see you in a bit?” he asked, leaning closer.

“You will,” Magnus said, closing the distance between them to press a quick kiss to Alec’s mouth. He smiled again before leaving the office, pulling his cell phone out as he did.

Alec watched him go, not bothering to hide it. He no longer cared who saw him mooning over Magnus. Regardless of what happened, he couldn’t regret that.

* * *

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