Malec Moments

Betrayal

Magnus winced as he propped himself up on numerous pillows. It had only been a few days since Amatis stabbed him and nearly killed him. Though the wound had healed and only a thin red line remained, he still had some residual pain when he moved certain ways.

He looked up as Alec appeared in the bedroom doorway. The site normally would have brought a smile to his face, but today, he wasn't very happy to see him. He crumpled the piece of paper in his hand and it vanished. He certainly didn't want Alec to see it. Not until he figured out what was going on, at least.

He didn't need the note as a reminder. The words were etched into his brain and eating at him like cancer. He had recognized the handwriting at once.

My Dearest Magnus,

I am so sorry to be writing this, but I do not feel right about keeping it from you any longer. I have been meeting in secret with your young Nephilim, Alexander Lightwood, and we have struck a bargain. He has agreed to kill Raphael Santiago for me, and in exchange, I am to make you mortal.

I know this information is difficult for you to hear, and you may have trouble believing it from me. So I offer you the chance to discover the truth for yourself. I have invited Alexander to the City Hall subway station tomorrow morning at eight o'clock to finalize our plans. I assure you he will be there.

Yours always,

Camille.

Magnus stared at Alec, who was leaning against the door frame watching him. Those beautiful blue eyes that, Magnus had always felt, seemed to look right into his soul. The twist of his lips when he smiled. The way he always seemed to melt into their kisses. Surely these can't be features of someone who would betray me like this, Magnus thought hopefully. Perhaps Camille is lying. She is a manipulative b***h, after all.

He watched Alec cross the room and felt the bed dip as he sank onto it.

If Camille lying is the best excuse you can come up with, you may as well break up with Alec now, he told himself. Pain stabbed through his chest, and this time, not from his wound.

He had to know the truth, that much was obvious. He knew he couldn't stay with Alec if he truly planned to do what Camille had suggested.

"Magnus? Did you hear what I said?"

Magnus, snapped from his reverie, looked up at Alec, who was sitting up straighter than Magnus was capable in his current condition. Alec's face held nothing of the secrets that he was hiding if he indeed was hiding anything. Magnus had known for a while that something was wrong, that Alec wasn't happy. But right now, looking down at him, a slightly incredulous look on his face at being ignored by his boyfriend, Magnus saw nothing but love in his Nephilim's eyes.

Is that true, or is it what you want to see? he asked himself.

In response to his question, he pushed himself up and kissed Alec gently on the lips. He winced in pain at the movement, and Alec broke the kiss.

"Are you okay?" He sounded worried. Why would he sound worried if he were planning to shorten my life? Magnus shook the thought away.

"I'm fine. It just still hurts a little sometimes."

Alec shifted positions, scooting down on the bed so they were on a level. He touched Magnus's cheek gently, with just the tips of his fingers, and Magnus's eyes fluttered shut. Alec then leaned in and kissed him again.

"Did you hear what I said a minute ago? Jace is awake," Alec said. "He still has the Heavenly Fire in him, but he's going to be okay." Alec's eyes were shining with delight.

"Does that mean you can stay here tonight?" Magnus asked, and added to himself, where I can keep an eye on you?

Alec had visited Magnus daily since their return from the Burren, checking on him and insisting that Magnus lay in bed while Alec fetched food and water and whatever else Magnus wanted. Magnus had found this ridiculous. He may have been injured but he was still a powerful warlock, plenty capable of getting his food. But in the evenings, Alec had returned to the Institute to watch over Jace.

Alec smiled. "Yes. That means I get to come home."

Home. Magnus liked the sound of that. The bed had seemed so large and empty the last few nights without Alec there. He had missed Alec more than he ever thought possible. He remembered snuggling Alec's pillow, breathing in the scent of him, sandalwood shampoo, and light and goodness that only comes from Shadowhunters.

And then the damn letter from Camille had appeared.

Oh God, please don't let it be true.

And Magnus pulled Alec in for another kiss.

Alec twined his fingers with Magnus's, smiling a crooked smile that melted Magnus's heart.

"I keep thinking about the battle," Alec said, softly playing with Magnus's fingers, "and about watching Amatis stab you. When you fell…and there was so much blood…"

Magnus touched his cheek with his free hand, making Alec look at him. "Hey, I'm ok now. You saved me. You gave me your strength so I could heal myself. I owe you my life."

And it was true. Magnus would have died without Alec that night. So how could it be possible that Alec would conspire against him after all they had been through?

"And I would do it again," Alec said.

Magnus flashed a half-smile that did not quite reach his eyes. He steeled himself and asked, "Does that mean you are okay with my immortality now?" There is was, he had said it. He prayed Alec's answer would resolve the lingering doubts Camille's letter had planted in his mind.

"I can't imagine a world without Magnus Bane," Alec said quietly. "You're the only constant in my life. Shadowhunters battle and die all the time, but you? You'll be here forever."

Magnus's heart swelled. That's what he had hoped to hear, what he had needed to hear. Throwing caution to the wind, Magnus rolled on top of Alec, wincing in the process but dismissing the pain. He kissed him like it was the last time he'd ever see him, like everything he had, all his hopes and dreams, could be expressed in the form of a kiss. He kissed him until he felt his heart might explode with all the love he felt for his Shadowhunter. And then he kissed him some more.

When they finally broke apart, Alec stared at him, breathless and panting, a dazed expression on his face. "What was that for?" he whispered.

"Because I love you," was all Magnus said.

They lapsed into a comfortable silence, holding each other until they finally drifted off to sleep.

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When Magnus woke, he knew something was wrong. He could feel it, sense it. His sleep-addled brain couldn't think what it might be though.

As he became more coherent, he realized what was missing. Alec. His side of the bed was empty and cold.

Magnus got to his feet. He was stronger today and there was minimal pain associated with his wound.

Maybe he's in the bathroom, Magnus thought, reasonably.

He was wearing only his boxers and a pair of thin black pajama pants he had slept in. He didn't bother to grab a robe or slippers, just padded across the hall to the bathroom. The door was ajar, and the lights were off. No, Alec was not in the bathroom.

Maybe he's making coffee or breakfast, Magnus tried, but his hope was rapidly fading.

He went to the kitchen, his brain taking note of the deafening silence in the apartment, even if his heart was refusing to acknowledge it. The kitchen was empty. Alec was not here. Alec was gone.

Magnus swore a litany of expletives. He grabbed a blue crystal decorative vase from the table and launched it at the fireplace. It shattered into a million pieces, just like his heart, each shining fragment tumbling to the floor like so many tears. There was a pain in his chest, but he was unable to discern the pain of his wound from the pain in his heart.

He stood there, seething for several long minutes, contemplating his next move. He had to know the truth. He had to know if Alec was with Camille. He had to know if his relationship, the thing that had brought him more happiness and love than he'd ever known, was over.

He threw on some clothes, not even noticing what they were or if they even matched, and glanced at the clock on the bedside table. It was five minutes to eight o'clock. He didn't have much time to get to that tunnel. Blue flames appeared between his hands and, a moment later, he disappeared into the Portal.

Magnus landed in the dark confinement of the subway tunnel. There was no visible light source, no sounds, no detectable movement. He briefly wondered if he had missed Alec. He knew Alec would not be late if indeed he were meeting Camille. Alec was nothing if not prompt. Perhaps it was his Shadowhunter training that explained his timeliness. Magnus did not know, but it was something he had always admired about the boy. Magnus, himself, tended to run according to his schedule.

Suddenly, he heard a noise. It could just be a rat, he thought. He backed into the shadows along the wall of the tunnel and waited.

A small white light appeared in the distance, growing steadily bigger as the figure holding it approached. As he drew near, Magnus recognized the unmistakable arch of Alec's cheekbones, the point of his chin. It may have been his imagination, but he thought he caught a glimpse of the piercing blue color of the eyes that frequented his dreams.

Magnus's heart tore open. Camille had not lied, or been mistaken, or any of the other things he had so foolishly hoped.

As the figure of his Shadowhunter, his Alec, passed his hiding place, anger hit him like a punch in the gut. He stepped out of shadows and said, "Alec. Alexander Gideon Lightwood."

As Alec's figure was frozen, Magnus's whole world shattered.