Chapter Text
Alec found himself grabbed by the arm by Aline, and pulled into the library. “We have some major catching up to do!” There was no one else inside. Most of the extra shadowhunters had returned to their home Institutes, or Alicante itself, Aline being one of the few exceptions to the rule. “You’re dating the High Warlock of Brooklyn. The Magnus Bane-”
“And?”
“And!” Aline shouted, throwing her hands into the air. “You’re… you’re dating a man-”
He frowned. “You didn’t seem to have a problem with it the other day.”
“I didn’t! I don’t!” Aline sighed, and appeared to study her chipped nail polish. “Are you parents okay with it?”
Alec rubbed the back of his neck. “Mom is trying. Dad is… I don’t know, really.” She nodded, but she was jittery, looking all over but never at him. “Are you okay?”
“I… I went out last night, right, and I had a few to drink, and I started making out with this guy I just met,” Aline started pacing. “And… uhg, gross. He was objectively good looking. I just… I just don’t.” She looked at him, and to his horror he found tears in her eyes, spilling down over her cheeks. She wiped her fingers along her cheeks, getting rid of the tears, only for them to be replaced with more. “I just don’t like men.”
“That’s okay,” Alec said, grabbing her shoulders, and leaning a little so they could look eye to eye. “I like men enough for the both of us.”
At that she gave up a watery laugh. “I- I found my soulmate.” She pulled up her sleeve and let him take a look. “I don’t know what to do.”
Alec led her over to the couch, and they both took a seat, facing each other. “The first things Magnus and I said to each other were terrible, hateful things. Yet, despite that, we moved forward, fell together, and as much as I hated these marks, I love him.”
She sniffled a little. “Is that your way of saying the soulmate mark is right?”
“There is always a choice, Aline,” Alec said softly. “And that choice belongs to you.”
::
Thinking about choice, Alec took the stairs up to the loft. So much had changed in such a brief span of time. He let himself into the apartment, and called out a greeting. He followed Magnus’s return call to the kitchen. The warlock was making a pot of tea, and Alec just grabbed a plate, and stacked it with a couple of the tea scones Magnus always seemed to have fresh.
“Those are white chocolate and blueberry,” Magnus said, getting the tea platter ready. “I wasted my afternoon watching one of those baking shows, and it got me in a mood.”
“Do you always bake the scones?” he asked, picking up the plate, as Magnus grabbed the full platter.
“When I’m in the mood to, otherwise I’ll make a little trip to a bakery somewhere in the world. Honestly, I love British scones.”
“So you just portal to London?”
Magnus laughed. “Why not?”
Alec opened the door to the balcony, and held it open for Magnus. It was becoming a bit of a habit for them. If Alec got off work at a reasonable time, he’d go to Magnus’s. They would have tea, and sometimes some baked goods, and sit out on the balcony, talking for hours.
“Could you teach me to bake?” Alec asked.
“That sounds like it could be fun,” Magnus poured the drinks. “What would you like to learn to make?”
“I don’t even know,” Alec admitted with a half-shrug. “It was just a thought.”
“We can look through recipes together, find something worth attempting.” Magnus hummed, pleased with the taste of his tea.
Alec smiled a little. How lovely. They were planning dates, planning little at home activities. It was so domestic, and sweet. And it hurt. It hurt so much. He set his tea aside. He took deep breaths, trying to calm himself.
“Alexander?” Magnus shifted, set his own tea down. One hand went to Alec’s shoulder, the other to his forearm, fingers over the custom arm-guard that had finally come in. “What is it? What’s wrong?”
Instead of outright answering, Alec gently grabbed the hand on his forearm, pulling it away from him, and then pushing up Magnus’s sleeve exposing Alec’s own writing on his skin. “I know we’ve said our sorries, I know we’ve forgiven each other,” he glared at the glittering words. “But I hate that that is what I leave you with.”
“I’m no more happy with the words I left on your skin, my darling,” Magnus replied softly, giving Alec’s shoulder a squeeze.
“I-I wish we could just… start over,” Alec mutter petulantly.
Magnus eyed him, then shifted away in his seat. Alec’s heart sank. Magnus cleared his throat, extended his hand, words on display. “Magnus Bane.”
There was such a wonderfully playful spark in Magnus’s eyes as they flickered gold. It was silly, but Alec played along, knowing Magnus was only doing this to cheer him up. He put his hand in Magnus’s giving it a gentle shake. “Alexander Lightwood.”
The glitter on Magnus’s arm moved.
No.
Because that isn’t possible.
Alec’s grip tightened as he stared in horror. No. No, no, no, no, no. Not now that he actually had Magnus, the man’s mark couldn’t be changing, he couldn’t be destined for someone else so soon after they’d begun.
‘Alexander Lightwood’
Alec stared at it. “That isn’t funny, Magnus,” he could barely breathe. “Just because you can change it with mag-”
“You can’t change a soulmark, not with anything,” Magnus said. “You can mask it with a glamour, hide it with makeup, but you can’t change it.” Then, all of a sudden, Magnus was pulling at the straps of the arm guard, unbuckling it and tossing the leather on the table.
‘Magnus Bane’
Alec’s jaw dropped. His shaking fingertips traced over the words that were sinking into his skin, no longer the golden glitter, but the typical red. “What? How?”
“I don’t know, I don’t know!” Magnus looked every bit as shocked. “You always have a choice. I… I guess we both made a choice to start over?”
“And that worked?”
“I don’t know, Alexander!” Magnus was poking at the words on his own arm, staring at them like they might fade away if he blinked. “It’s your name.” His fingertip followed the swirl at the base of the ‘L’ in Alec’s writing. He looked over at Alec, tears in his eyes, but a smile on his lips.
::
They did end up going to the aquarium. A picture of them standing in front of pool of jellyfish was on the refrigerator. Magnus did teach him to make ravioli from scratch. They spent an entire day at an arcade, and had brought Zeke with them. They spent hours on the couch watching movies, hours more in the kitchen baking. Bleary early mornings were full of shared kisses, and softly spoken words. An empty drawer became Alec’s, then a dresser, then Magnus’s room became their room.
Alec wore his arm-guard during battle, but exposed his soulmate mark to the world when he was off duty.
Months spent together became a year. Then two.
Alec fussed in front of a full length mirror. He’d watched the video on his phone about how to get a Windsor knot in his tie at least five times, and still couldn’t manage to get it done right. A double tap, and then the door behind him opened. Jace appeared in the mirror in a full suit, tie done perfectly.
“By the Angel. Aren’t gay guys supposed to be good at this?”
“I can tie a perfectly acceptable noose,” Alec shot back with a glare. “Shall I demonstrate?”
“Unnecessary,” Jace replied with a little smirk. He swatted Alec’s hands away, and with quick graceful movements tied the burgundy tie. Alec did a quick search of the bond, and found joy and excitement. “Ready?”
“A little nervous,” Alec admitted.
“I know. You’ve never been one for crowds,” Jace replied. “But, at least this is a group that isn’t actively trying to kill us.”
“Which is odd.”
“I know, right?” Jace replied and they shared a smile. “You better get going, I have to get downstairs, and make sure the groom isn’t freaking out too bad.”
Alec nodded, they separated in the hallway, and Alec knocked on the door, waiting for permission. Clary opened the door, smiled, and beckoned him inside. The redhead looked beautiful in a floor length burgundy dress with a deep v. “You clean up nice,” she said, giving him a look over.
“You actually tamed your hair,” he retorted.
She pursed her lips, but the side curved up with her amusement. Their relationship had grown closer in the past few years. They were Jace’s soulmates, and if nothing else, that pushed them to care for one another’s wellbeing. Still, eighty percent of their relationship was teasing each other.
“If you two are done,” Isabelle stepped out of the other room in a dazzling ballroom gown. The long sleeves were a decorative gold leaf design that went down over the bodice and into the delicate tulle of the skirt. Her hair was in a twisted style on one side that left her hair flowing over one shoulder. Opal studs in her ears. “Big brother, tell me I’m pretty.”
“Pretty?” Alec blinked. “By the Angel, Iz. You’re gorgeous.”
She smiled, delighted. “Thanks.”
He grabbed her hands with his own. His baby sister was getting married. To her soulmate. A Shadowhunter. Which, holy shit, isn’t that a long story? From vampire, to daylighter, to sacrificing immortality and memories to a demon in exchange for them all escaping Hell, getting his memories back, taking the risk of drinking from the Mortal Cup- yeah, Simon had done a lot over the past few years, and was the only person Alec (surprisingly) thought would ever be worth his baby sister.
He brushed his thumbs over her knuckles, one of them pausing on the large opal engagement ring. “You ready to get married.”
“I can’t wait,” she replied. She hooked her arm around his. “Thanks.”
He raised a brow. “For what?”
She smiled up at him, her heels still not making up for the height difference between them. “Walking me down the aisle, always being there for me, for always being whatever I needed, whenever I needed. Thank you for everything.”
He blinked away a sudden influx of tears, kissed her temple, and cleared his throat. “Grab the flowers, Fray. We’ve got a wedding to get to.”
::
The reception party was in full swing. Their father had been invited, and responded that he would be there, but ultimately hadn’t shown- he was expecting a child with his soulmate in a few months. Their mother looked stunning a glittery midnight blue dress as she went around thanking guests. Aline was there, dancing with Helen as if no one else was in the room. He smiled at her when their eyes met, and she shot him a wink back in return, pulling her girlfriend a little closer.
Jace and Clary were on the dance floor with moves that were a little awkward, but they were both laughing and having a great time. Jocelyn was in attendance, so was Luke. Alec did another look around, but still couldn’t find Magnus anywhere. Isabelle grabbed his arm and pulled him on the floor for a dance. Simon cut in near the end, and the adoration between the newlywed couple was clear. Alec returned to his previous mission.
He spotted Max goofing around with his parabatai, and was happy to see his little brother having a good time, especially since he'd have to return to training when the weekend was over. Clary was now sitting near her mother, and Luke chatting away. Jace had been pulled into doing the Cha Cha Slide, but clearly didn’t know the moves (Alec avoided stepping anywhere near the dance floor where someone might pull him in.) Aline and Helen were huddled together in a dark corner of the room- he smiled and averted his eyes.
The lights dimmed as a slow song came on. He saw his mother, and started to approach only to slow when he saw his mother’s back tense, eyes narrowed. “A Lovelace? What are you doing here?”
The man’s posture straightened, and his lip curled. “It is a pleasure to meet you, Miss Trueblood,” he said with heavy sarcasm.
Her hands panted on her hips. “It’s still Lightwood since the Clave is still fighting me on the divorce and name change.”
He opened his suit jacket and pulled out an envelope, Alec could see the Clave symbol in the wax. “Everything has been finalized.”
She snatched it out of his hand, and ripped it open. Alec couldn’t help but to walk over to his mother, eying the man. They’d never formally met, but he knew that Anthony Lovelace was one of the few Lovelaces that were still Shadowhunters. Anthony worked in Alicante mostly doing clerical work after a demon severely damaged his left leg in such a way that Irazes could never completely heal, and left him walking with a cane.
He looked at her, less hostile, more curious. “Is everything in order?”
She looked up from the papers, then to Alec, then back to Anthony. “Yes. Thank you.”
“Just because I am a Lovelace does not mean I’m incapable of doing my job,” he retorted with a bland look that said that he received such treatment before.
She gripped the papers a little tighter. “My apologies.”
He nodded. “A beautiful wedding, give my regards to the bride.” With that he hobbled through the crowd.
“It’s official,” Maryse said softly.
“Did he call you Miss Trueblood?” Alec said, looking over his shoulder still following the man’s blonde hair.
“Yes.”
“What he said just had a sense of dejavu,” he said, tucking his hands into the pockets of his trousers.
She gasped, the papers crumpling in her grip. “My mark. He… he said the…” she stared at him, wide eyed and shocked. “He…”
“The marks are never wrong,” Alec said, jaw slack. “Dad was never your soulmate?”
She thrust the papers into Alec’s hands, and started to weave through the crowd. He stared after her, holding the papers to his chest.
“What was that all about, Darling?”
He nearly jumped at the sound of Magnus’s voice so close. “Where were you? I was looking for you,” Alec said with divided attention.
“Well I went outside for some air, it was too hot after all that dancing, and then I went to the bar- open bar, a terrible thing to waste- Alec, are you okay?”
He folded the papers and put them back into the envelope with shaking hands. “I think Mom just met her soulmate.”
“Oh. OH!” Magnus’s eyes flickered gold for a split second. “What? Tell me everything!”
::
In the morning, Magnus’s hair was in disarray, eyeliner smudged and halfway to his ear. Alec thought he’d never looked so perfect. “Good morning,” he whispered, running his fingers along Magnus’s jaw.
Magnus groaned, and rubbed his face into Alec’s chest instead of answering.
“Do you want me to make pancakes?”
The groan that earned was sinful, and usually reserved for really good sex. “Keep talking dirty to me,” Magnus said with a smirk.
Alec chuckled. “Real maple syrup.”
“Marry me,” Magnus said with a playful smile.
Alec paused, just a second, utterly serious; “Just give me the time and place.”
Magnus shifted, his chin digging into Alec’s chest a little. “Really? Would you?” he whispered, eyes golden and vulnerable.
“In a heartbeat.”
“The Clave wouldn’t accept it.”
“Fuck the Clave,” Alec growled. He dragged Magnus up his body until he could kiss him soundly on the mouth. Then the jaw. Then his neck. He drew away so he could once more look Magnus in the eyes. “You’re my heart, and my soul. I want you now… I want you forever.”
Magnus’s phone started to ring, breaking the moment between them. “Oh for fuck-” he cut off as he looked at the phone’s display screen. He scrambled for it, and answered, still half on Alec, half sprawled over the bed. “Cat? Everything okay? You never call before two in the afternoon.”
Alec drew protection runes with his fingers on Magnus’s thigh while he waited.
“I understand.” Magnus said. “No, not yet.” His eye shot to Alec. “I’ll call you back.” He hung up, left his phone on the bed, and straddled Alec’s waist. “That was Catarina.”
“I surmised that from you calling her Cat.” His thumb rubbed circles on Magnus’s hips. “What is it? Is she okay?”
“She’s been teaching at the Shadowhunter Academy.”
“I know, she’s terribly irritable about it whenever I go give lessons.”
“Yes, well.” Magnus took a deep breath, ran his hands through his hair, tugging a little before letting his hands fall onto Alec’s chest. “Someone abandoned a child there. On the steps. A warlock child.”
“A kid,” he whispered. “Someone just abandoned a kid.”
Magnus nodded. “It’s not uncommon for… for children like-” he pointed to his eyes, his Warlock Mark.
“Well,” his finger smoothed along Magnus’s abs, skimming over where his belly button would be if he had one. “We’ve been talking about kids.”
“Hypothetically.”
“You weren’t serious?”
“Yes, of course I was! Just- we never talked about what kind of child.”
“A child child?” Alec cocked his head, confused. “What other kind of child is there?”
“Don’t be purposely dense. A Shadowhunter child, I assumed-”
“You assumed I wouldn’t want a Warlock child?” Alec sat up a bit, insulted. “I love Zeke. I’m his favourite uncle.”
“Woah, hey now, I’m his favourite uncle!”
“That’s not what he told me!”
“Well it’s what he told me!”
“Do you want a child with me?” Alec asked.
“Yes.” Magnus sighed. “I want everything with you.”
“So… we should probably get dressed.”
Magnus threaded his fingers with Alec’s pushing him down on the bed for a moment, lips brushing in soft, loving kisses. “Are you sure?”
“Yes. If we show up naked, it won’t look very good for us.”
Magnus barked out a surprised laugh. “Alright, Shadowhunter.” His fingers trailed over his own name on Alec’s skin. “It looks like we have a new adventure awaiting us.”