#magical warlock knight!Magnus | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

faejilly · 1 year

Note

one thing i hate in fics is when they say that alec is less flexible than magnus, matt being less flexible than harry? absolutely.

but ALEC LIGHTWOOD accomplished warrior, master archer, and much more, being less flexible than magnus just doesn’t make sense to me,

like i’m my mind all shadowhunters are crazy insane flexible bc it just doesn’t make sense that they’re not, so that whole notion is bullshit to me and once i would love to see alec being more flexible than magnus

12/10... I would say no notes but actually I have SO MANY NOTES so the meme dies with me. (This is not a new thing. 😅)

There are a lot of different types of 'flexible' but I will agree that like... Magnus' physicality is absolutely partly about knowing he can handle any situation thrown at him, is part self-defense and psychological armor and health, strengthens his magic and his mind and his mood, but it's also for FUN and dancing and teasing and playing!

And all of that, even the self-defense & fighting when necessary, is entirely different than the physicality of a trained soldier who fights every single damned day of his life and has since he was (at least) ten, and probably younger.

(Shadowhunters were all child-soldiers! They're deeply fucked up and violent and competent! EMPHASIS ON VIOLENTLY COMPETENT.)

And I wrote a whole tangent on child-soldiers and Alec as a mentor but that is NOT WHAT THIS IS ABOUT WHOOPS, I'll try and come back to that somewhere else at some point.

The whole point of Shadowhunters, however, is that they can successfully fight demons AND (however reprehensible this bit is) they have the skill & power to subjugate the entire Down World, including the Warlocks who have vast and flexible magical powers that can pretty much do anything they want them to.

Now, part of this is numbers, because even if they are in a constantly losing battle against the demons, they do still have children which as far as we know none of the Downworlders can manage.

But part of this must be that they can, in fact, handle/fight against magic, demonic skills, and people who have hundreds to thousands of years of experience keeping themselves alive in a world that is hostile to them. They can hold their own against vampires and werewolves and warlocks and even seelie knights who ALSO TRAIN TO FIGHT FOR DECADES OR CENTURIES, because the fae do in fact prefer to stay in their own realm rather than fight for an equal seat at the table with the nephilim.

Like. WTF think about that. The Seelie Queen is capricious and powerful and power-hungry and terrifying and she lets her people be second-class citizens in our realm because it's not worth trying to fight the nephilim.

Now part of that is clearly she doesn't want to have to be the one dealing with demons and she does in fact have her own realm to live in, but still.

STILL.

Nephilim must be absolutely horrifying.

The most famous 'greeting' from angels when they meet humanity is "Be Not Afraid" but nephilim want and encourage that fear.

They are infected with angelic grace in a way that overrides their humanity, in a way that even overrides demonic power, because children of nephilim are always nephilim even when they don't know it, even when one of their parents is demonic or Downworlder. (Even Jonathan Morgenstern is still a nephilim, as well as everything else he is because of Lilith's blood & Valentine's abuse.) They have runes to enhance and control and shape their angelic grace, but even without a single rune activated they are not mundane.

Even a bb!nephilim with minimal training like Clary can survive being thrown off a building and breaking every part of her body. She survives! (When apparently unprepared and without active runes!) Long enough to be healed with magic/iratzes/handwaved-something-or-other off screen and for it to be entirely irrelevant five minutes later. Alec gets stabbed in the heart with adamas (which has been shown to be very hard to heal from in other contexts!) and is fine the next episode! We all kind of complained about the lack of healing/comfort/explanation in the show, but THINK ABOUT IT.

They can heal from almost anything to the point that they're child soldiers who don't even have to learn what mundanes would consider basic first aid because they don't need it.

Magnus puts on a good show but he is terrified of the Circle returning. Now there are a lot of very good reasons for this, including politics and prejudice and systemic power structures but it is also because nephilim even on an individual level are terrifying.

They have to be, or their historic ability to oppress the rest of the world falls apart. They can neutralize and hold their own against vast cosmic powers (the more powerful demons) and ancient vicious capricious warriors who have no love for them (fae) and/or wild magic powered by incredibly emotional beings who are terrified for their lives and souls and giving it their all because they have absolutely nothing the fuck left to lose (warlocks), and the nephilim consistently, reliably, win.

Not without cost, of course, but still. They win. They are not trained to survive or outlast or get away to hide and fight back another day, which is clearly the goal of most Down Worlders. They are trained to end a threat quickly and economically and sacrifice themselves if necessary to do it. (Survival is preferable, so you're around to fight the next thing too, but it is understood that it is not always possible.)

Realistically, this means that if a nephililm is actually trying to fight they will be able to do things with their body that are impossible, and they will be able to work through damage that would be fatal to everyone else without even flinching, and if you're close enough to see how a nephilim can really move you're probably already dead you just don't know it yet.

#jilly answers #Anonymous #my sh rambling #sh meta #eldritch angels #shadowhunters #idek how to tag this ramble sorry not sorry #there is of course the fact that #if you're close enough to a nephilim who ISN'T FIGHTING #but does still wish to show you what they can do #you're probably in for a good time #dancing or rock-climbing or fucking or whatever #but it might be a little disturbing if they're not careful #because that's still not RIGHT that a body can do that

52 notes · View notes

vaguelyrotten · 10 days

Text

To Hell With the Consequences - Chapter 5

Alec Lightwood knows danger - as the son of a prominent criminal family, it's something he's intimately familiar with. However, a chance encounter at a club proves that there's more out there than he was originally aware and he finds himself suddenly thrust into a world where All The Legends Are True.

Two weeks passed before Magnus was able to see Alexander again. They’d texted since then - rather, Magnus had texted and flirted and sent pictures of a usually disgruntled but still adorable Chairman Meow - and Alec had responded in short sentences and one word answers at the strangest hours of the day. He was beginning to lose hope that he’d see his Knight in Dark Leather again and hoped that, at the very least, the man was okay and hadn’t had any other concerning encounters with the Downworld when he finally got a text from Alec. He wanted to meet tonight at Pandemonium - he wanted information that he thought only Magnus could provide.

Magnus was a little downhearted that Alec’s request was nothing more than a simple business meeting but he’d never let that stop him before. He spent more time than he’d like to admit changing his outfit and restyling his hair (thankfully with the help of magic or he’d still be here trying to find something to wear) before he finally settled on something that he hoped said ‘here for business but absolutely open for it if you want to turn this into a good time.’ Bright vibrant blues accented by silver threads that carried over to the sterling, onyx, and cobalt that adorned his hands and neck. He’d put a streak of white in his hair and used magic to place a light dusting of glitter across his cheeks and eyes.

He was sitting in his VIP booth, trying not to continuously glance at his phone to check the time when he felt Alec’s unusual aura brush against his wards. He watched as the man entered, looking just as delectable as he’d been the last time Magnus had seen him. Alec glanced around for a moment before his eyes landed on Magnus. He gave the man a little wave, and watched as he pushed his way through the sea of bodies on the dance floor and stepped onto the dais. “Why, Alexander, it certainly is wonderful to see you. I must admit our conversations via text message don’t hold a handle to being able to see your pretty face. Come,” he said, patting the couch next to him. “Take a seat and tell me what it is that brings you to my club this fine evening.”

Now that he was close, Magnus could take a good look at him. Alec looked rough - exhaustion was written in every line of his body, and there was a fresh cut on his eyebrow that was held together with two small pieces of tape. There was faint bruising on his jaw, and Magnus had been around long enough to recognize the tell-tale sign of a few broken ribs based on the tense way the other man was carrying himself.

“Oh, darling. What happened? Who do I need to kill?” Magnus asked, his magic bristling under his skin at the very thought of someone harming a single hair on Alec’s head.

“You don’t need to kill anyone,” Alec said, though Magnus could tell by the tone of his voice that he didn’t believe a word that he was speaking. The way he even sounded beaten and exhausted made the warlock’s heart break further. “It’s just the new job I’m working. It’s more intense than I thought it was going to be and the hours are sort of all over the place. We got back from Prague last night so I’m pretty much just existing on an exorbitant amount of coffee and stubborn determination at this point.”

He could tell Alec was trying to say very little about his occupation but he wasn’t sure how the other man would react if he told him that he knew about the Lightwood family business. He didn’t want to spook Alec, not when he’d finally gotten him to pay him a visit in the first place, so for now Magnus decided to bite his tongue. “Let me heal you at least. You look like you're in pain and I hate to see you suffering, darling.”

Alec shook his head. “It would look suspicious if I came back with all my cuts and bruises healed. Normal people take time to heal…and I don’t want my current employers to pay that much attention to me.” A thought seemed to cross his mind and he sighed. “More than they already are, at least. I started the job the day after our last meeting, and they’ve kept me on a pretty tight leash since day one. We’re apparently working against the clock for this job, and they want to make sure I stay focused. Even convincing them to get me a couple of hours to come here and talk to you took some creativity.”

“If they’re that controlling, they don’t sound like very good people to be working for,” Magnus pointed out, trying not to sound like he was being judgemental.

Silence hung in the air between them for a moment before Alec let out another sigh and wrung his hands in his lap nervously. “I told you that I’m not a good person, Magnus, and I wasn’t overexaggerating when I said that, and if I’m a monster then my parents are ten times worse.”

“I’m well aware of what your family business is, Alexander,” Magnus said casually, noticing how Alec’s eyes seemed to widen in surprise. “After you left two weeks ago, I met with some of my friends who had been there the evening of the attack. They were the ones I trusted to hold down the fort while we came back here to talk. Catarina is a nurse at the local hospital. She recognized your last name immediately.”

“Why did you agree to meet me then? If you know who my family is, you know that I’m not safe to be around.”

“I have magic, Angel. There’s very little in the Mundane world that could truly be a danger to me besides, why would I judge you for the occupation that your parents have chosen? I told you before that my father was a demon. That makes him infinitely more dangerous than your mother and father could ever hope to be, and yet…that didn’t stop you from coming back here tonight.”

Alec’s brow furrowed like he was trying to find a counterpoint to Magnus’ statement when the man shifted his position ever so slightly on the couch and let out a hiss of pain. Magnus rolled his eyes, a hint of magic already dancing across the tip of his fingers. “I’ll leave the cuts and brusies but at least let me heal the broken ribs and make sure you aren’t bleeding internally. I’d hate to lose you to something I could easily fix when I’ve only just met you. No arguing with me, Alexander. Lift up your shirt, this will only take a second, and then you can tell me what brings you here to see me.”

He was pleased when Alec didn’t argue, watching as the man hiked up the corner of his shirt, revealing perfectly toned abs that in any other situation, Magnus would have liked to get a closer look at (preferrably on a bed and with his tongue). His eyes were quickly pulled away from Alec’s physique when he noticed the mottled purple and green skin that was spread across a large portion of the man’s side and across his stomach. Magnus swore, brushing his fingers across the bruised area before he could stop himself. “What were you fighting? A bear? Two bears?”

“No bears,” Alec replied, relaxing ever so slightly under Magnus’ touch. “I made a mistake… this is my own fault but I appreciate it.” He watched as his multi-colored skin disappeared, leaving only healthy flesh in it’s place. “They almost didn’t let me come here today,” he said after a moment, though the segway seemed out of place to Magnus. “And then they were going to send someone with me. I had to convince them that they didn’t want to be here.”

Magnus couldn’t help but notice the blush rising to Alec’s cheeks as he spoke. “And just how did you do that?”

“I told them that I had a boyfriend who would worry if I didn’t check in,” Alec said, though his voice was very nearly a mumble.

A grin spread across Magnus’ face as he realized that all his flirting over the last few weeks hadn’t been lost on the younger man. “Well, typically I’d like to take you on a date first but perhaps we can catch up when your job is done. At the very least, I owe you a nice dinner and drinks for coming to my rescue the first time we met. But I suppose we need to free up your schedule a little bit before we can make plans. What can the great Magnus Bane help you with today?”

Healing done, Alec put his shirt back down. Even though it pained Magnus to no longer have his new boyfriend’s body on display, he knew that they’d never get anywhere if they didn’t act professionally. Alec chewed on his lip for a second like he was considering his words carefully. “You told me that your father was a demon…and if there are demons, that must mean there are angels and maybe even fallen angels. I was wondering if you could tell me about them?”

Magnus blinked, replaying the question in his mind to make sure he heard the younger man correctly. If you had asked him what he thought Alec would want to know about, never in a million years would fallen angels have made the list. “Do I want to know what brought around this line of questioning?” Magnus asked casually, trying his best to keep his voice level.

“You said that you wanted me to know the sort of things that I might be up against,” Alec pleaded. “And we’ve been traveling a lot — there’s only so many many times you can watch the same four in-flight movies. I’ve had time to think, and I’d like to know more.”

He was sure there was more to Alec’s story than that but Magnus would rather the information come from him than any number of questionable books he was sure the younger man could get his hands on. “Well, those are certainly loaded questions that I don’t entirely think we’ll have the time to really delve into in one meeting. If I had known that’s why you were coming to see me today, I would have asked Ragnor to come along because that’s much more his sort of thing than it is mine, being that he is a Knight of the Cross.”

Alec’s brow furrowed. “Knight of the Cross?”

Oh Lilith, this boy was walking headfirst into a world he knew nothing about, Magnus thought to himself. He snapped up two cocktails and held one out to the other man. “I guess that’s as good of a place as any to begin this conversation. “The Knights of the Cross are the Angels’ chosen. They wield holy blades, and they help to maintain a balance between the Darkness and the Light. How they are chosen I’ve never been able to figure out, and getting anything out of Ragnor is like pulling teeth most of the time.” He fixed Alec with a pointed look. “I was almost positive your mysterious savior was one of the Knights but Ragnor has been the only one in the city for years. He doesn’t remember saving you, and if he says he didn’t, I’m apt to believe him.”

He wasn’t going to mention the angelic presence he felt on the boy’s soul, not yet at least. Alec didn’t seem to notice his slight hesitation. “So they…fight demons?” He asked. Magnus could practically see the wheels turning in Alec’s head.

“Not just demons. They are forces for the Light, and they are the Angels’ representatives here on Earth. Any time there is some sort of battle between the two forces - even if it’s Mundanes doing the fighting - the Knights are sent out.”

“So… I was right then. If there are demons in the world, then there are angels too.”

“Yes, you were right. Unlike the demons, the Angels don’t tend to show themselves on Earth very often — they have the Knights to do their bidding — but from what Ragnor tells me, it does happen on occasion. Uriel has visited him a time or two though I’ve never been able to get me any of the juicy details.”

Alec seemed to be hanging on his every word so Magnus decided to continue before the other question Alec had asked could be asked again. “And yes, if there are demons and there are angels that can also mean there are fallen angels.” He paused for a moment, briefly considering just how much information he wanted to provide the boy. “My father may be a Greater Demon but he was also once an angel. He wasn’t cast out of Heaven, he chose to Fall. That gave him some liberties, and he took up residence in Edom. The atmosphere of the Hell dimension twisted the remains of his angelic magic. That’s how he became a demon.”

Truthfully, it was a bit more complicated than that but based on Alec’s admission about the short leash he was given from his current employers Magnus felt that they didn’t have the time to really dig into the details. There would be time for that later when the younger man didn’t have a job looming, and Magnus could bring him to his loft, safe behind his strongest wards, and tell him about the true depth of the world that they both lived in.

Alec’s face scrunched up in thought, and he tilted his head slightly as he seemed to consider Magnus’ words. “You said he chose to fall,” he remarked after a moment, turning his full attention back to Magnus. “What about those who didn’t choose?”

Magnus’ boy was honestly too smart for his own good. He snapped two cocktails into existence and held one out to the younger man. “That, my dear, is a rather loaded question, and one I feel we don’t have near enough time for but since you asked, let me give you some brief insight into the Order until I can get Ragnor here to explain it to you fully.”

----------

A seemingly important phone call pulled Alec away from Magnus just under an hour later. He gave the younger man a quick kiss on the cheek, and told him to stay safe and to call him if he needed anything. Alec blushed and mumbled a quick promise that he’d be fine before he took his leave. Magnus watched as he waded through the sea of people and disappeared out the front door before he wrote a fire message, and sent it to Ragnor with a flick of his wrist. He was surprised when the man showed up in person not even ten minutes later. “I was in the area,” the Knight explained when Magnus raised his eyebrow in question. “And you said it was serious. I hope you aren’t calling me here for some sort of fashion faux pas. I don’t care how atrocious you think they are, acid wash jeans aren’t a reason to declare a state of emergency.”

“No fashion disasters — unless you have a strong opinion on faded black t-shirts and jeans with holes in the knees. Alexander paid me another visit today, and had some rather disconcerting questions for me. I was wondering if you have heard anything in your circles that should have me worried. I’ve given him some answers but I’m still afraid that he’s in way over his head.” He paused as the Knight took the seat next to him that Alec had vacated not too long ago. “He asked about the Fallen. I had to tell him about the Order.”

Ragnor seemed a bit startled by Magnus’ admission but schooled his face quickly. “He went from being clueless about our world outside of the so-called monsters that he’d been seeing to asking about the Denarians?”

“I thought it was rather odd too. It’s quite a big jump to make which makes me think there is something more going on here. Unfortunately, Alec wasn’t willing to speak about whatever it is his current employer has him doing. I told him I knew about the family business but he’s still adorably concerned about my safety.”

Ragnor hummed, tapping a finger against his chin in throught. “There have been whispers,” he said after a moment, almost like he was still considering whether or not he was going to share this information. “That some of the coins have disappeared. Tessa hasn’t been able to turn up any actual proof — the ones that are said to be missing were being held by people that aren’t exactly willing to talk to us.”

Magnus’ blood ran cold at Ragnor’s words. If what he said was true, there would be severe implications for both the Downworld and the Mundanes alike. Those coins held the spirits of beings whose only wish was for power and destruction, and the Knights current and past had fought to keep them out of the hands of people who believed the Denarians flowery words and wanted to see them succeed in their false quests. If those were now out in the world, very likely in the possession of some bad people with even worse intentions, then they were about to be well and truly fucked.

Unless, of course, they could recover the missing coins and get them back to somewhere safe.

The Knight’s intel and Alec’s odd question had a pit of dread pooling in Magnus’ stomach. He was old enough to realize that the two situations were too related to be a simple mere coincidence. No, he was sure that Alec’s inquiries about the Fallen and the apparent disappearance of a few of the coins were somehow linked. He could at least take comfort in the fact that Alec himself wasn’t in possession of one of them — Magnus was certain he would have been able to sense the corruption on the boy’s soul as he passed through the wards if that were the case.

They needed to be prepared, and Magnus needed more information — no use putting Alec into any danger before they had a clearer picture of the story. “We need to get the band back together,” he said finally, taking out his phone as he prepared to send out a group text message. “Something is rotten in the state of Denmark and we need to be prepared for it.”

#shrb2024

0 notes

dhampiravidi · 6 months

Text

Mortal Instruments Medieval Fantasy AU

what I wouldn't do for a Medieval Fantasy AU where the Lightwoods, Morgensterns & Herondales are all nobles descending from actual angels, while the Lightwoods are part of Alicante/Idris's City Watch & ofc Magnus is the High Warlock/magic advisor person--

Oraia as a playful nymph or a "fallen goddess" (god from another pantheon who's weakened)--

Cathan as the lost Morgenstern heir, who's busy fucking around with the fey--

Jas as a knight in the Watch, who's also the Wayland heir & eventually Jace's personal bodyguard because I deserve to see it--

Demons could either be from a specific evil country, or from the dimension Pandemonium like in the books.

#wishlist #medieval fantasy au #admin #sebastian morgenstern king of edom #tmi rp #jonathan christopher herondale. first of his name. king of idris.#I'm thinking Idris has the nobles vote on who the new warrior king (or queen) will be. then the king picks their court.#tsc rp #the mortal instruments rp #the shadowhunter chronicles rp

1 note · View note

foxymoley · 3 years

Text

💛Birthday Gift Art!🤎

@brightasstars got a whole bunch of nominations and I have it on good authority that they're a pretty awesome person so I snooped around and found a prompt that they liked a lot. It inspired me immediately so I went with it!

Prompt from Toby (don't know where the original is from, sorry! Hmu if you know):-

Lydia is the bored but supportive princess and Alec is the brave knight who repeatedly rescues her from Magnus the warlock. Hope you like it!

#Malec #alec lightwood #Magnus Bane #Brightasstars #Fanart #Shadowhunters #Huntersmoondiscord #Medieval au #Au #Knight #Princess #Warlock #Magic #Fairytale

51 notes · View notes

tikobithelich · 2 years

Text

Transformers Prime: DnD Headcanons

I think I’m coming back to doing headcanons and stuff, but for now, no requests are open and I’m just doing what I want for now. And just to note, this is specifically for Transformers Prime and is organized in:

Race - Background - Class (Subclass)

Thank you for reading this and now, onto the headcanons!

AUTOBOTS

Optimus Prime: Protector Aasimar - Acolyte - Paladin (Oath of the Ancients)/Cleric (Knowledge Domain)

Ultra Magnus: Leonin - City Watch - Fighter (Eldritch Knight)

Ratchet: Owlin - Sage - Cleric (Life Domain)

Bumblebee: Half Wood Elf - Urchin - Rogue (Scout)/Paladin (Oath of Devotion)

Arcee: Wood Elf - Soldier - Rogue (Phantom)

Bulkhead: Goliath - Athlete - Barbarian (Path of the Berserker)

Wheeljack: Earth Genasi - Far Traveler - Fighter (Samurai)

Smokescreen: Half High Elf - Folk Hero - Rogue (Arcane Trickster)/Fighter (Rune Knight)

Cliffjumper Minotaur - Mercenary Veteran - Fighter (Gunslinger)

DECEPTICONS

Megatron: Fallen Aasimar - Gladiator - Fighter (Champion)/Paladin (Oathbreaker)

Starscream: Aaracokra (Peregrine Falcon) - Noble - Rogue (Assassin)

Soundwave: Kenku - Spy - Rogue (Mastermind)/Wizard (School of Conjuration)

Knockout: Tiefling - Knight - Bard (College of Glamour)

Breakdown: Half Orc - Soldier - Barbarian (Path of the Battlerager)

Shockwave: Warforged - Sage - Sorcerer (Shadow Magic)

Skyquake: Githyanki - Mercenary Veteran - Blood Hunter (Order of the Ghostslayer)

Dreadwing: Githyanki - Mercenary Veteran - Blood Hunter (Order of the Ghostslayer)

Arachnid: Drow - Urban Bounty Hunter - Bard (College of Whispers)

Hardshell: Orc - Faceless - Barbarian (Path of the Zealot)

PREDACONS

Predaking: Dragonborn (Brass) - Feylost - Barbarian (Path of the Beast)/Fighter (Battlemaster)

Skylynx: Dragonborn (White) - Feylost - Barbarian (Path of the Beast)/Fighter (Psi Warrior)

Darksteel: Dragonborn (Blue) - Feylost - Barbarian (Path of the Beast)/Fighter (Echo Knight)

MY OCS (I got bored, sue me)

Spectrum: Air Genasi - Soldier - Bard (College of Swords)

Meraki: Harengon - Acolyte - Cleric (Forge Domain)

Cynosure: Tiefling - Noble - Rogue (Swashbuckler)/Warlock (Pact of the Hexblade)

Fenrir: Longtooth Shifter - Feylost - Barbarian (Path of the Beast)

Ten: Human - Folk Hero - Fighter (Cavalier)

Solyric: Spring Eladrin - Entertainer - Bard (College of Valor)

Moonglade: Aaracokra - Outlander - Sorcerer (Dragonic Bloodline (Bronze))

110 notes · View notes

bytheangell · 3 years

Text

Something to Prove

(500 word prompt: Throne. Also this thorn collar image (Read on AO3)

Meliorn stands reluctantly beside the Queen’s throne. She’s looking down at Alexander and Magnus, who stand before them.

“This is hardly the first time a Seelie’s been romantically entangled with a Nephilim or Warlock,” she says. “But it’s the first time one has spoken up in defense of those partners to argue against a direct order.”

Meliorn resists the urge to wince. This is his fault. If he’d kept his mouth shut he’s certain the plan to go behind the Shadowhunter’s backs would’ve been thought better of - even without his input. He knew better than to allow his personal feelings to influence his words to the Queen.

“We’re sorry if our relationship caused strain in your Court, Your Highness,” Magnus apologizes quickly.

“I’m more concerned with where the loyalty of one of my strongest knights lies,” the Queen continues. “And very curious of what a Nephilim has done to earn it.”

Meliorn’s gaze flits over to Alec. For a brief moment, Magnus looks as concerned as Meliorn feels.

A heavy, expectant silence falls.

Meliorn watches Alec shift uncomfortably. Alec looks to Magnus who gives him the briefest nods of encouragement, and Meliorn knows his lovers enough to know that Alec likely planned on Magnus doing all the talking.

“I don’t know,” Alec admits finally. “I’ve treated him with respect, kindness, and… and shown him love. I trust him, and can only hope he trusts me in return.”

“He certainly does,” the Queen confirms. “I could have him exiled for his defiance, you know. I could have him killed.”

Meliorn tenses beside the Queen, knowing she’s right, except she isn’t speaking to him - she’s still addressing Alec.

“What would you have me do?” Alec asks, seeing where this is leading.

“Prove you’re worthy of his devotion. Prove you’re the ally not just to Meliorn, but to all of us, that you claim to be.”

She motions and another Seelie brings out a circlet of black thorns. It looks more like barbed wire than nature, dark and dangerous.

“Allow Meliorn to place this collar around your neck. If your intentions are pure and honorable, it will do you no harm. If not, the thorns will release a mild poison. Once on, it will not be able to be removed for a full lunar cycle.”

A month. A month of Alec being seen by Nephilim and Downworlders alike with a Seelie collar around his neck. It’s too much to ask of him, and Meliorn is about to refuse on his behalf and accept whatever sentence the Queen gives him when Alec kneels before him.

“Alexander…”

“My love for you isn’t a secret. Neither is my intention to peacefully unite the Shadow World,” Alec says simply. “Let them see I mean both.”

Meliorn takes the collar and places it around Alec’s neck. It tightens magically, but where the thorns press against Alec’s skin they don’t break the surface. Alec doesn’t even flinch.

Instead, Alec slowly looks up at him and smiles. Meliorn smiles back.

#alec/magnus/meliorn #magic #magnus bane #alec lightwood #meliorn #shadowhunters #hm500 #hmdiscord #i've been meaning to write this ship for ages and this was the perfect excuse #bless these 500 word prompts for getting me out of my writing slump #elle writes a few deadbeat lines

18 notes · View notes

liron-ao3 · 3 years

Text

A sting of jealousy

Malec drabble

Magnus takes a last look at his boyfriend leaning in closely to the seelie knight, listening with a smile on his face as the man whispers directly into his ear and strokes his fingers over Alec's forearm. With a flick of his hand, the warlock opens a portal and steps into their his bedroom, with another he gets ready for bed. He pulls the comforter over his shoulders and closes his eyes.

He should be beyond petty feelings like jealousy, but Alec tickles emotions out of him that he has barely felt in his four hundred years. He hates it. But at the moment, he hates Alec more. How dare he's sulking through all the preparations for the seelie ball, and now he has more fun than Mr Party himself? Screw him and the womb he grew in!

Maybe Alec wants to sow his oats after all. The thought curls poisonous and heavy as lead in Magnus' stomach. Maybe he is too much, after all. Maybe his young shadowhunter wants something less public, less difficult. Simply less Magnus.

Tears form in Magnus' eyes. He can't handle this. Alec owns his heart. Thinking he could be with another man? It tears Magnus open from the inside out.

He tosses and turns. Will Alec even realise that he's gone? Or will he have a good time with wine and ivy twines? Vivid pictures paint themselves in Magnus' mind, each of them tearing the wounds open that Alec's love had managed to close since they got together.

It's just like it was with Camille. Sweet talk and physical closeness, just to replace him as soon as she found someone to warm her bed when Magnus was gone. Maybe Alec has already fallen into a moss-covered bed, finding pleasure under someone else's ministrations. Why wouldn't he, now that the world of dating is his oyster? Magnus had helped him free himself. Now it is probably someone else who will reap the fruit of his labour. It wouldn't have been the first time. But probably the last. Magnus is done with love, once and for all.

The telltale sound of an opening portal comes from the hallway. Magnus isn't worried. Only Catarina's and Tessa's magic can pierce his wards now that Ragnor is gone. But the bedroom door opens, and the silence of the footsteps tells him that it's none of his friends.

"Magnus?" Alec sounds concerned.

"Already bored with that seelie knight?" Magnus bites out. There is a long silence that stretches Magnus' remaining composure thin. "Here to pick up your belongings and move them to the seelie realm?"

"What the hell are you talking about!?"

Magnus pushes himself up against the headboard and pierces Alec with his cat eyes through the darkness of the room. The shadowhunter looks disgruntled at best.

"You let that guy touch you. Whispering sweet words into your ear, didn't he?"

Alec turns for the light switch, and Magnus closes his eyes against the sudden brightness. "I still don't know what you're talking about. The party was loud. We talked about his cousin Helen, who is dating a friend of mine."

Magnus' eyes still send daggers Alec's way. The shadowhunter ignores them and walks closer. "Are you jealous?"

Magnus crosses his arms over his chest and pouts. "I don't get jealous."

Alec sits down on the edge of the bed. "Do you really think I would replace you with a shady seelie knight?" Magnus pushes his jaw forward. "You ruined me for anybody else, Magnus. You have to know that." Still, answering silence. "Nephilim love once, fiercely."

Magnus' resolve to hold on to this ugly feeling that is stealing his breath crumbles. And Alec, the bastard, knows it. He grabs Magnus' hand and tugs until he loosens its grip. The warm touch lets Magnus' tears loose.

"I will never lay my eyes on another man, Magnus. You are my world." He pulls the silently crying warlock into his arms. "I know you were hurt in the past. But I won't add to that hurt. I will strive to heal it and make you forget that it ever existed."

Magnus lets himself be held by strong arms that feel so much like home that it scares him. "I'm sorry, Alexander. I couldn't bear to lose you."

Alec presses a kiss into Magnus' hair. "Me neither. You never will to another man, this I can promise you."

Magnus smiles sadly into Alec's shoulder. He knows that one day he will have to let Alec go. But that moment is far, far away if he has any say in it. And until then, they will make the most of it.

#malec fic #malec fanfic #malec fanfiction #malec fandom #jealousy #emotional hurt and comfort #malec

17 notes · View notes

utilitycaster · 4 years

Text

Updated Class Choices in Actual Play: main PCs

Original post here, I’m just doing the whole thing again instead of reblogging or something like that. Since making this post I’ve fully caught up with NADDPod and RQG and there’s been several new D20 seasons, so LET’S GO

potential spoilers for anything that isn’t a one-shot in Critical Role, TAZ Balance or Graduation, NADDPod, RQG, Relics and Rarities, and all D20 seasons. Also for reference: I’m counting Trinyvale and The Mavrus Chronicles as main campaigns, as well as all the D20 sidequests.

If a player or a PC leaves/character dies mid-campaign the character still counts as a main PC, as does that player’s replacement if the player themselves didn’t leave (eg: both Scanlan and Taryon are considered main PCs for CR campaign 1).

In a couple cases I did have to guess regarding what the base class was, for characters who were multiclass builds from the start, and I’ll note that.

Rusty Quill Gaming is pathfinder rather than D&D, and subclasses don’t fully line up (as for classes, most do and I’m counting Cel’s class as Artificer/Alchemist subclass in D&D).

In the case of subclass or class changes, which has happened a few times in D20 in particular, I’ve noted the change

Keep reading if you want the actual information!

Fighter is the most common, with 11, plus two multiclass dips into fighter. And, like D&D at large, human fighter is a very popular race/class combination. Champion is the most common subclass, with four characters (Magnus from TAZ, Hardwon from NADDPod, Fabian from Fantasy High, and Veros from Relics and Rarities). All but Fabian are humans, at least to start off, and Fabian and later Hardwon are half-elves. Bertie from RQG likely would have been the champion archetype in D&D as well. There are two battlemasters (Boomer and Jet, both from D20), and then it’s all over the place. The multiclassers are both barbarians multiclassed into battlemaster (Grog and Amethar). Of the fighters, one multiclassed into a rogue, one into a bard, and one (Jet) switched into fighter having originally been a rogue.

[edit on Nov 28 per an anon ask - Magnus is actually a Battlemaster despite Big Champion Energy! which means of the fighter-as-main-class, we have 3 each of champions and battlemasters, and Bertie from RQG which is pathfinder, and then one each of gunslinger (Percy), eldritch knight (Theo), arcane archer (Hungry Dave), and echo knight (Henry)]

Cleric is next up with 10, plus three characters who multiclassed into cleric. There’s no clear favorite for subclass - grave is the only domain with two characters (Caduceus and Efink) and the rest vary. Two characters, Kristen Applebees and Zolf Smith, have changed domains (and deities) over the courses of their respective campaigns. All but one of the dwarven main characters in actual play has been a cleric, and there have been a few humans, but otherwise it’s again pretty scattered. The multiclasses have also not shown a clear favorite (1 war, 1 city, 1 tempest). Note: I considered Fia and Saccharina both to be multiclasses into cleric, as well as Bob; no cleric base classes have multiclassed into another class. All the multiclasses into cleric are other spellcasting classes (wizard, sorcerer, and bard).

Barbarian and rogue are tied with 9 characters each, plus one multiclass into barbarian and three into rogue.

Barbarian: three berserkers, two each of ancestral guardian and zealot, and one each of wild soul and storm herald. There are two half-orcs and otherwise no race preference. As mentioned, two multiclassed into battlemaster fighters; there’s also a multiclass from barbarian into sorcerer (Fitzroy) and artificer (Gorgug). The lone multiclass into barbarian is Moonshine Cybin, a druid.

Rogue: there are two arcane tricksters, two inquisitives, and two swashbucklers, plus an assassin, a mastermind, and Sasha Racket who in D&D would probably be a thief. Thanks to D20 being like “toy is a race now” it’s hard to say what the overall race breakdown is, even counting all A Crown of Candy characters as human variants, but there are 1.5 goblins (Nott/Veth being the 0.5) and three confirmed humans (Ruby Rocks, Sasha Racket, and Marcus St. Vincent). Of the multiclasses into rogue, two are rangers who chose the assassin subclass (Vex and Liam Wilhemina) and one is a fighter (Magnus Burnsides, subclass not clear). The two rogues who multiclassed are Vax, who took levels in vengeance paladin and one in druid, and Ruby, who took levels in shadow sorcerer. (note: Jet Rocks is counted as a fighter as she gave up her rogue class entirely, but she was a rogue to start)

Bard is next with 8 characters, all but one of whom (swords) is a lore subclass, with one multiclass into bard. Fig Faeth was formerly a college of whispers bard, but switched into lore during Fantasy High Live. There are two tieflings and two fairies from D20, who I believe use elf stats, plus a high elf, a human, a gnome, and an aasimar. The multiclass into bard is Fabian Seacaster, a fighter; the multiclasses from a bard base class are Fig (into hexblade) and Bob (into city cleric).

Druid and Paladin are the next most common, with six characters; there is one multiclass into druid and two into paladin (and Vax is responsible for most of this)

Druid: The only repeat subclass is circle of the shepherd (Kugrash and Lillith) - the rest all again all over the place, and all six have different races. The multiclass into druid is the aforementioned Vax (rogue and paladin); the only druid to multiclass out is the aforementioned Moonshine (into barbarian).

Paladin: two oath of devotion (one of which, Ricky Matsui, switched to oath of redemption), one oath of the ancients and for a while, vengeance (Beverly), one oathbreaker (Cody “Night Angel” Walsh) and two are from pathfinder and difficult to determine from a D&D standpoint (Grizzop, of Artemis, and Azu, of Aphrodite). The races are completely all over the place again. None of the paladins have multiclassed, but there are two multiclasses into paladin (Vax and Fjord, a rogue and warlock respectively, into oath of vengeance and oath of the open sea, also respectively).

We have a four-way tie for next most common, with five each of ranger, sorcerer, warlock, and wizard.

Ranger: two beast master, two gloomstalker, and a hunter. There are two half-elves (Vex and Nyack) and no other real patterns. No one has multiclassed into ranger, but Vex and Liam W. both as mentioned multiclassed into assassin rogues.

Sorcerer: three draconic, one storm, and one wild magic. Two are human, and there are no other preferences for race. One (Saccharina) multiclassed into tempest cleric, and there are two multiclasses into sorcerer, both from battle classes (Fitzroy, a barbarian, into wild magic, and Ruby, a rogue, into shadow).

Warlock: three are hexblades, because let’s face it that class is extremely cool, one is a celestial warlock and one is a genie. No significant race overlap (technically, Lapin Cadbury uses the human stat block, and Iga is human) (I am assuming pactwraiths have revenant stats but like. who knows). The common ground for multiclassing into warlock is “Emily Axford likes to play hexblades”, with both Fig and Sofia taking levels in it; Fjord is the only warlock to multiclass out, into oath of the open sea paladin.

Wizard: two transmutation, one divination, one necromancer, and one chronurgist. Two are high elves, with no other preferences for race; Fia is the only one to have multiclassed (into war cleric) and no one has multiclassed into wizard.

And finally, tied for last but with four each, we have monk and artificer.

Monk: no subclass overlap until Sofia switched to Way of Shadow, but three are humans and one is probably a human equivalent (bittyfolk from Tiny Heist) - the subclasses represented are Cobalt Soul, Drunken Master, Shadow, and Long Death. No multiclasses into monk (like ranger, monk doesn’t offer too many benefits in a multiclass dip) but Sofia Bicicleta took a level in hexblade warlock.

Artificer: despite not being made official until relatively recently, this caught up, thanks to Zonk Verbena Zirk Vervain. Three are either alchemists or probably the equivalent thereof (Taryon is based on the UA version but is pretty clearly not a gunsmith, and Cel’s class is technically Alchemist, not Artificer, but Artificer with the alchemist subclass is probably the closest 5e equivalent), and one is an artillerist; no race preference. None have multiclassed, but Gorgug (barbarian) has taken a level in artificer.

And finally, there is one Bloodhunter, Mollymauk Tealeaf/Lucien is his name, murdering Cerberus Assembly members is his game.

-----------------------

several other fun facts from the giant list I made to do this:

Number of characters who have switched races or bodies during their campaign: 3

Number of characters who have switched deities/patrons during their campaign: 7

Number of characters who have briefly not had a class while their party was mid-level, with said change representing a major turning point for their character, but then came back stronger than ever having addressed the negative behaviors they learned from a seafaring father figure and having acquired a new plot-relevant weapon, and immediately multiclassed into a class that uses charisma for spellcasting: only two but it’s weird it happened twice

Number of characters whose first name or nickname is a food or drink: 6

Number of characters whose first name or nickname is a food or drink from A Crown of Candy: 0

Number of characters who typically go by only one name (ie, actively do not use their last name or any titles): 18

Number of characters who go by a given name and title/descriptor (eg: Adjective Firstname, Firstname the Title, Firstname of the Place): 8

Number of characters with three-part names (first, middle, last): 2

Number of characters with four-part names (first, two middles/a two-word nickname, last): 3

Number of characters with no name: 1

Percival Friedrickstein Von Musel Klossowski De Rolo III: but you can call him Percy

#critical role #taz balance #taz graduation #dimension 20 #rqg #naddpod #relics & rarities #i am not tagging with every single naddpod or d20 campaign thanks

39 notes · View notes

theredraccoon · 3 years

Text

A Desperate Proposal - Ch 1

“Have you gone absolutely insane, Alec? What the fuck is this shit?”

Jace had barely even entered Alec’s office before he started yelling, waving the crumpled, fine linen paper bearing the official Seal of the Clave around wildly.

Alec sighed and leaned back in his chair, lifting his hands to scrub at his face. Sounding absolutely exhausted, he said, “Ah. Jace. I see you got the memo.”

Jace could feel himself going redder. “Yes, Alec, let’s start with the fact that I found out that I was getting married in a fucking memo! Are you shitting me right now? A memo? What, were you too scared to tell me in person? You had to write it on fucking Clave stationary? This is a joke, right? It’s got to be a joke. What the fuck is going on?”

The room was quiet for a solid minute, apart from Jace’s furious panting breaths. When Alec still didn’t say anything he lowered the (goddamn) memo and finally looked at his parabatai. Alec’s head was resting on the back of the ornate chair, the very same one that six Heads of the New York Institute had sat in over the course of the last two hundred years, and he was staring blankly into space. There were deep purple bruises under his eyes and permanent frown lines had been carved into his brow and mouth that had slipped Jace’s notice until now.

Jace’s anger suddenly cooled, and he dropped heavily into the chair in front of Alec’s monstrous desk. Which he now saw was practically buried under paperwork. He said quietly, “Alec, what the hell is going on?”

Alec still didn’t meet his eyes. “How many Shadowhunters have we lost in the last year, Jace? Do you know?”

Jace shifted uncomfortably, not wanting to be reminded of the funerals that somehow had become a normal part of their lives. “I dunno, maybe ten? Why? Demons get lucky sometimes and we die. What does that have to do with me getting married?” Although now Jace was trying to think about when that had happened, when it had become normal to have this many funerals. It hadn’t been like that when they were younger. Right? He was pulled from his thoughts when Alec spoke again.

“Twelve. We’ve lost twelve Shadowhunters in New York alone, just last year. That’s one a month. And some of the other Institutes have been hit worse. We’re dying, Jace, at an alarming rate.” There was a depth of grief in Alec’s voice that Jace couldn’t understand, more than just the normal loss that all Shadowhunters felt when one of their own died, and he found himself pressing a hand over his parabatai rune, feeling an echo of it deep inside him.

Alec gestured at the mess on the table in front of him. “Do you know what I’ve been doing the last few weeks? I’ve been combing the archives to see if something like this has happened in the past. I’ve asked Magnus to search his Downworld scrolls to check and the answer is no. The Shadowhunter population has stayed almost completely stable for centuries, regardless of wars or anything else. Something new is going on. Something is killing us off, bit by bit.”

Jace was dumbfounded. “And your solution is to fucking marry me off? To a vampire? In what world does that make any kind of fucking sense?”

“You’re not the only one getting married, Jace. The Clave has ordered a series of marriages to create an alliance with the more prominent groups of Downworlders— warlocks, Seelies, werewolves, and vampires. Izzy, mom, and I are all getting married to Downworlders the same day you are.”

Jace’s head was pounding. “What? The Clave wants all of us to marry Downworlders? Who are you marrying? Who is Izzy marrying? Why are any of us getting married at all?” His voice was getting slightly hysterical but Jace didn’t think he could be blamed for it. Nothing made sense.

“We are dying, Jace. Something is going on and we need other people to help us stop it and the Downworld is our best option. At this rate, we can’t keep the demon world in check and figure out why we keep getting killed with the number of Shadowhunters we have. We need allies. We need more people on patrol. We need the knowledge the Downworld has that we’ve been ignoring for centuries because of our own stupid prejudices.

“So Izzy’s going to marry a Seelie, I’m marrying a warlock, Mom is marrying a werewolf, and you’re marrying a vampire. This is happening.” Alec’s words were hard and firm.

Jace was reeling and he couldn’t figure out what to comment on first. He fell back to repeating his earlier question. “Who are you marrying? Who is Izzy marrying?” Jace’s eyes widened as he realized that he’d missed something in Alec’s deluge of information. “Wait, who is Maryse marrying?”

“Izzy is marrying Meliorn, he’s one of the Seelie Queen’s knights.” Jace saw Alec take a deep breath. “I’m marrying Magnus,” Jace started to puff up and Alec spoke louder, “the High Warlock of Brooklyn and the inventor of the Portal. Mom is marrying Luke, the Beta of the New York pack.”

The knot of rage in Jace's throat was now so large he could barely speak. "So you get to marry your boyfriend and Izzy gets to marry someone she knows and likes and has been sleeping with for six months already, Mom gets to marry her ‘one that got away,’ and I get to marry a stranger. A random-ass vampire. Do I have it right, Alec? Anything I’m missing?”

He watched Alec swallow. Jace was in complete disbelief. “I am missing something, aren’t I. Holy shit, Alec, what else? Is there something I should know about this vampire? Do you even know her name? Anything about her?” Jace could hear himself shouting but didn’t care.

Alec seemed to shrink down into himself, shoulders curling in for a long moment before he stood up and came around the desk to stand in front of Jace. He straightened into an open battle stance, centered on the balls of his feet and braced for anything. Jace stared up at him. There was an ugly sense of foreboding in his gut.

Alec's voice was even, no inflection whatsoever, and he was looking past Jace’s head to the far wall. "There tend to be more male vampires than female. I told the Clan that you were bisexual. I don't know if you’re marrying a man or a woman."

Jace's fist had broken Alec's nose before he had even registered that he'd moved. Alec's head snapped back and blood started to pour out immediately. He’d made no move to defend himself, just rolled with the punch, hands hanging loose at his sides.

Jace could hear the breath sawing in and out of his lungs and his hand was throbbing in time with the heartbeat thundering in his ears. He looked at his parabatai and saw the acknowledgement of betrayal in Alec’s eyes. And regret and resignation and about five other emotions Jace couldn't identify.

Alec stood there, unmoving, and the blood slowly dripped down his face as they stared at each other.

Jace's voice was a croak when he finally spoke. "Is it really that bad?"

Alec's voice was nasal and choked and he had to clear his throat several times before he could speak. "Magnus and I estimate that all the Shadowhunters in the world will be dead in three years if we don't do something. Maybe less."

Jace staggered back, moving far away from Alec until he hit the wall of the office. He slid down until his ass was on the floor. He buried his fingers in his hair and blindly looked at the carpet in front of him.

He heard Alec sigh and move back around his desk, rattling drawers until he found a handkerchief. Jace watched as Alec put it over his face and set his nose with a crack and a grunt. He made a cursory wipe at the blood and then dropped the handkerchief in the trash bin.

Jace let his head fall back against the wall as Alec walked over and settled down on the floor next to him. They breathed for a few more minutes before Jace spoke. "How could this happen? How come no one has noticed that we're all fucking dying? What the hell, Alec.”

Alec sighed and Jace watched as Alec let his long legs stretch out on the floor before glancing over at him. His voice was tired. “Magnus thinks that there’s some powerful magic going on, some kind of worldwide glamour that makes us, just, look away? Just accept what’s happening and not think about it. Like you did. By the Angel, Jace, you thought that ten Shadowhunters had died last year and you said it like it was no big deal! And in reality it was twelve. One every damn month. There are only a few hundred Shadowhunters at the Institute in the first place. And it’s getting worse. Only six died two years ago.” He huffed out a breath. “Only six.”

Jace shifted, uncomfortable with the idea that he was under some sort of glamour and didn’t know it. “So how did you notice it?”

Alec’s laugh startled them both. He cut an amused glance at Jace and said, “Magnus says it’s because I’m a workaholic with a giant hard-on for paperwork.” Jace grinned and Alec smirked back before sobering. “Although he’s not really wrong. Do you know how much funerals cost, Jace? It’s a lot. And suddenly the Institute was slowly going broke and I couldn’t figure out why. And then once I started connecting the dots, it was like a veil lifted and everything was clear. Ask Magnus; I freaked out on him pretty badly when I figured it out. He started investigating too and then we reached out to the other Institutes to see if it was just us. It wasn’t.

“They didn’t actually believe us, at first, either. We had to ask for their funeral records. Those were harder to ignore. We got the Clave involved a few weeks ago and everything has happened pretty fast since then. Even those stubborn asses could see the problem. Magnus and I were able to convince them that with the help of the Downworld, we might have a chance to figure out what the fuck is happening and hopefully not all die before we can. This was the best solution we could come up with to make alliances quickly that couldn’t easily be broken. There will be an amendment to the Accords to include our marriages right now, and then we will rewrite them completely in the future, after this is over. That’s the deal. If this works at all.”

The room went quiet again after Alec finished. They sat there. Jace listened to the clock on Alec’s desk tick softly. Alec didn’t say anything. When Jace glanced over at him, Alec’s head was leaning against the wall and his eyes were closed. He looked almost asleep. Jace was startled to realize that he didn’t remember the last time he and Alec had trained together. Or done much of anything together in the last few weeks. Jace’d been so busy with patrols. And apparently funerals.

Jace closed his eyes. “Okay,” he whispered, “okay, I guess I’ll marry a vampire.”

There was a touch on his arm. Jace looked down as Alec wrapped a cool, dry hand around his wrist. “Entreat me not to leave thee, or return from following after thee. For whither thou goest, I will go, And where thou lodgest, I will lodge.” Jace heard the words Alec spoke softly reverberate in his head and his parabatai rune burned.

“Jace, I am sorry. I know you have… complicated feelings towards being bi. I hope it’s not even an issue and that you’ll end up with a woman that you can get along with. I just knew that the Clan might not go for it unless I offered them the option. You know they have weird hierarchies. I couldn’t take the chance. We’re dying and I can’t stop it.” Alec’s hand abruptly tightened on Jace’s arm, becoming a bruising vice grip. “But Jace, you are still my parabatai, your soul is in my soul, and I will be with you through this, every step of the way. And I’ll find a way out of it if we need to. I promise you.” Alec’s voice was fierce before fading away into silence again.

Jace was suddenly exhausted, the maelstrom of emotions coursing through him finally easing, leaving behind bone-deep weariness and a headache behind his temples. Alec’s hand rested on his arm for another minute before dropping away. He looked over and Alec’s eyes were closed again. He wondered when Alec had last slept. The leftover blood still on his face had turned dark brown and was crusted in little flakes around his nostrils. The bruising would be spectacular if it wasn’t healed soon.

“Are you going to use an iratze on your nose.” Jace’s voice was flat, more of a statement than a question.

Alec’s eyes opened a slit and peered over at him. “No,” he said, shortly. His eyes closed again.

Jace felt a small, vicious curl of satisfaction in his gut. He relaxed against the wall and closed his own eyes. “Shit, man. This sucks.”

Alec let out a breathy chuckle. “Yes, Jace. This fucking sucks.”

#chapter 1 #shminibang #jimon #a desperate proposal #i suck at tumblr

3 notes · View notes

ladymatt · 4 years

Text

🙌 Fic Rec Bingo 🙌

Created by @lightveils on Twitter, this sounded like a fun challenge to do - and I’ve managed to fill the whole card with #Malec fics! *In truth, I could’ve used a card for a number of individual writers on their own, but the fics I finally settled on are under the cut! ❤ Enjoy! And show the writers some love! :-))

👇LINKS TO THE 25 FIC RECS BELOW THE CUT 👇

*A FIC YOU LOVE WITHOUT KNOWING THE SOURCE MATERIAL*

✨ Beyond The Sea by @lemonoclefox ✨

Never played BioShock but the underwater city of Rapture was brought to life so vividly here, that it didn’t matter!

*A FIC WITH A PREMISE THAT SHOULDN’T WORK BUT DOES*

✨ How Rare and Beautiful by @glorious-spoon ✨

Having 'our' Malec appear to TWI's Magnus worked wonderfully, thanks to some very clever writing!

* A FIC YOU’VE RE-READ SEVERAL TIMES*

✨ Best Laid Plans by @superficialpeasant ✨

I'll always come back to this DEEPLY satisfying story of intrigue, authority, prejudice, support - and my favourite depiction of bad-ass, hot-as-hell Malec!

*A FIC YOU STILL REMEMBER YEARS LATER*

✨ Home by @otppurefuckingmagic ✨

I read this gem three years ago now, but I still remember the chills I got when the emotional build-up led to a twist that blind-sided me - in the best of ways!

*A COMFORT FIC*

✨ Higher Than The Big Trees by @carmenlire ✨

Getting updates for this lengthy tale, knowing it was only ever going to hit new heights of happiness each time, makes this a real heart-warmer!

*A CATHARTIC FIC*

✨Good Intentions by @alittlebriton ✨

There was only ever one contender for this - an alternative take on what happens after Malec's 3x18 break-up - because chapter 4 had me punching the air over both of them venting their shit!

*A FIC YOU’D PRINT AND PUT ON YOUR BOOKSHELF*

✨ Of Splendour In The Grass by @lecrit ✨

Prejudice, poetry, pining and period Malec, was captured so beautifully here that it deserves to be bound and displayed in pride of place imo!

*A FIC YOU ASSOCIATE WITH A SONG*

✨ Appassionato by @chonideno ✨

Thanks to this fic, I can't hear Liszt's Liebestrume No. 3 in A flat without thinking of Alec hitting all the right notes with his music-loving neighbour!

*A FIC THAT INSPIRES YOU*

✨Thousands Upon Thousands Made An Ocean by @ohlafraise✨

This emotional fic was a lesson in how to have a story pack a punch into less than 800 well-chosen words! Still hurts, even now!

*A FIC THAT BROUGHT YOU ON BOARD A NEW SHIP*

✨Lasă-mă să stau (Let Me Stay) by @superficialpeasant ✨

An absorbing one-shot relating to the writer’s Best Laid Plans fic, this unexpectedly charming love story between Underhill and Hawkstorm (HawkHill) is the canon I will cling to!

*A FIC YOU WISH COULD BE A MOVIE*

✨ A Dream Of Peace by @ketzwrites ✨

There are some fics too epic in scale and splendour for mere imagination to do them justice, and this historical tale of kingdoms and knights deserves to be watched in technicolor glory!

*A FIC THAT LED TO YOU MAKING FRIENDS WITH THE AUTHOR*

✨ Brooklyn Magic by @the-burning-tiger ✨

I've met so many through their work, but I'm singling out the brilliant,Tigs, here because of our ridiculous descent into poetical exchanges in the latter chapters of this fic - one of my earliest Malec reads! Sending cwtches, T! X

*FREE SPACE - A FIC THAT’S WORTH WAITING FOREVER FOR TO GET AN UPDATE - IT’S THAT GOOD!*

✨Working Hard/Hardly Working by @irisadler (on AO3) & @stupidnephilimlove ✨

I'm currently re-reading this sexually-charged getting-to-REALLY-know-you fic which includes relatable temptation, brilliant humour & a soft, sweet centre - believe it or not! Perfect title, btw!

*A FIC YOU’VE GUSHED ABOUT IN REAL LIFE*

✨Your Name For A Capital by @the-prophet-lemonade✨

This time-travelling tale of repeated love and loss was both rich in detail about Magnus' past and devastatingly bittersweet about what lay ahead in Magnus' future! His heartache made me cry!

*A FIC YOU ASSOCIATE WITH A PLACE*

✨Two Halves Of The End Of The World by @la-muerta✨

Batavia was finally brought to life for me, thanks to @tethysea's enviable talent for world-building, with all the scenic detail and historical references that help enrich the story itself!

*A FIC THAT MADE YOU GASP OUT LOUD*

✨The Right Kind Of Love by @onyxmoon (on AO3)✨

I thought the 'betrayal' at the beginning of this fic was hard to take, but Magnus dealing with the aftermath and his own insecurities was even tougher! Malec learning to communicate is always a balm though!

*A FIC YOU FOUND AT THE RIGHT TIME*

✨Free Of Charge by @lorenzobane✨

Magnus being appreciated and protected by his dedicated and devoted Shadowhunter in this short but seriously sweet fic was precisely what I needed after S1!

*A FIC THAT YOU WOULD READ FIC OF*

✨Lead The Way by @clockworkswans✨

Like a black hole, this Doctor/Companion AU sucked me in, and just like the Tenth Doctor, I didn't want to leave! Such a moving and fantastical journey - I'd love to hear more of their adventures!

*A FIC THAT MADE YOU LAUGH OUT LOUD*

✨Don’t You Wanna Stay by @AlxSteele (on AO3)✨

Enemies to Lovers is a fave trope of mine, and when the stubborn denial and seething dislike is burned away with sexy humour and telling gestures, as in this gem, it's great fun to read!

*A FIC WITH A LINE OR TWO YOU’VE MEMORISED BY HEART*

✨You Who Have Come From My Old Country by @poemsfromthealley✨

"Even so, Magnus loved him, loved him, loved him" - very few writers could persuade me to endure a Malec fic that tells of unbearable loss and suffering - but the touching celebration of their legacy is what I take away from this!

*A FIC THAT GAVE YOU BUTTERFLIES*

✨Body Of Memory by @glorious-spoon✨

This memorable fic about amnesia effectively had S1 Alec being confronted with S3 Alec's reality - and I STILL feel Magnus' fear and Alec's confusion in my bones!

*A FIC THAT EMBODIES SOMETHING YOU VALUE IN LIFE*

✨ Magnus Bane’s School For Young Warlocks by @Miasunrise (on AO3)✨

Alec doing whatever it takes to protect his children is definitely something I can relate to, and this cleverly-crafted fic of finding new family gives depth and character to Max and Raphael!

*A FAVOURITE AU*

✨Walkers Of The Winding Path by @poemsfromthealley

The bewitching combination of mythical monsters, supernatural hunters and this writer’s distinctive way with words means I'm completely under this story's spell! I'll walk this path many times, I think!

*A FIC YOU STAYED UP TOO LATE TO FINISH READING*

✨My Body Is A Cage by @unrestrainedlyexcessive✨

This was me dipping my toe into an AU I wasn't convinced I'd enjoy, but thanks to this writer’s compellingly-quirky storytelling, I couldn't rest before knowing what befell these fated lovers!

*A FIC THAT MADE YOU FEEL SEEN*

✨Beautiful Distraction by @unending-happiness✨

Who better to colour my bespoke fic with every shade of me there is, than my parabatai, Brit! Welcome to my favourite pairing - Malec & Pandemonium! LY, B! ❤😘

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

#MyPosts #FicRecBingo #Full card achieved!#Spoilt for choice really!#Malec #FicRec #lightveils #WriterAppreciation #It's important

140 notes · View notes

normal-thoughts-official · 4 years

Note

Ok so some of your content implies immortal Alec and I was wondering how you thought it would happen? I've read a few things where Clary creates a rune/uses the alliance rune to make him immortal (but I don't think you're a real big fan of her) so I wanna hear your thoughts and also maybe Magnus's reaction

hoooooo boy i am GLAD YOU ASKED because i have a whole ass au that i have like. basically all the plot down but my stupid brain can’t turn into a fic so i guess im gonna shove it here and GOODBYE FOREVER

(also, about the clary thing: it’s complicated diaushduaih because i kind of really hate her in canon but i also accepted fanon clary into my life? mostly because i unfortunately can’t help but ship clizzy, but anyway, i kinda disassociate clary from canon. so i’m not really against the idea that she makes a rune or something, but i do think this idea is more interesting. or maybe it isn’t but then i guess that’s your personal problem because well, you did ask lol im jk btw)

okay so i have one word for you: seelies. hot diggity damn do i fucking love seelies or what

so you know how seelies are the offspring of demons and angels? and there’s this whole thing about demon blood and angel blood not mixing well at all? well, i was thinking, how the fuck does that work. and i came to the conclusion that whatever stronger parent they had’s blood would like, tame the other or whatever, you know? but then what if they had equally strong - or equally weak - parents? like a child of an archangel and a prince of hell, what the fuck happens then? or alternatively the child of some angel janitor and a minor demon, would they even have enough magic?

so i figured if that happens it’s like as if a seelie has an autoimmune disease - their body is fighting itself constantly. for those who have very strong parents, this means that they are decaying quickly, and usually won’t be able to like, survive for long if they don’t do something. for those who have weaker parents, it usually means they’re weak

so these seelies are actually born mortal, and for the ones with stronger parents, pretty much with a lifespan of like, a few days before they end up dying due to the autoimmunity. so what happens for those is, they have this Cool Ritual that makes them immortal and solves all their problems

basically what happens is: seelies are one with nature, correct? but they’re also, like, individuals. so they have their own magic, their own energy, their own life source. right? so what happens to these seelies is, they tie this life/magic source of theirs to that of the universe. they basically become one with the universe fully, instead of just guarding it and being connected to it, they are literally tied to it, so much so that their magic and the world’s magic is one and the same. basically their life is fed by the same source that feeds all life, even mortal ones, and that source is endless, so they become immortal. it’s not a cure per se, since it doesn’t really stop their blood from fighting itself, but it does solve the problem because it has endless energy to keep doing it. and after going through this magical ritual, they become basically the strongest seelies around, because they have access to very strong demonic and angelic magic and the like, natural source of the world. so that’s pretty cool

and this whole thing is like. absolutely top secret, no one but the seelies knows how it works or even that it exists. especially because the seelies used to be basically closed off to outside influences, besides the very few representants they had going to the realms (like meliorn)

meliorn is one of those super powerful seelies, a child of an archangel and a prince of hell, who has gone through this ritual. which is one of the many reasons they’re, you know, a super powerful and respected Seelie Knight, sent to deal directly with shadowhunters and the highest threats they have to deal with, all by themself. no one would be crazy to go against them, because they are extremely powerful. it’s also why they had, to seelie standarts, been given a slap to the wrist for taking clary to twi - i mean, they didn’t even lose their position in a super trusted and highly important job, really? like yes they were tortured and don’t get me wrong, that was fucking awful dude, but i feel like the seelie queen could have been a lot more cruel, could have taken away their job (it would make sense to since they basically committed treason by seelie law) or exiled them, or maybe even killed them. but they got “just” a physical punishment. that’s. weird to say the least

so that’s why, because meliorn actually has a lot of leverage and importance. they have a rare condition, a lot of power that most seelies can’t dream of, and they are extremely smart and have knowledge of the culture of our realm, which most seelies don’t since their realm is closed to outsiders. the seelies can’t afford to lose them. and they know that, too, which is why they went so hard to help clary and take her to twi in the first place - they knew that they would be punished, but that it wouldn’t actually risk their position, or their influence

anyway! with the previous seelie queen gone, i like to think that meliorn becomes the new seelie queen (random hc that no one asked for: since i refuse to believe that seelies have any concept of gender, i think the position is called “seelie queen” because outsiders took a look at the first seelie queen, who’s very cis female-presenting, and were like “ah, is that your queen?” and to seelies that basically translates to just “monarch” in whatever their language is, so they were just like yeah sure. and so the position is called that and they don’t even know that it’s supposed to be gendered and that to outsiders meliorn would probably be called seelie king, they are just like “i am the new seelie queen” and no one of course is going to fucking question why they didn’t gender the position, especially considering how fragile relations with the seelie realm are) or at least is given like, an important position or something. like tbh i don’t stan monarchy so :/ but anyway the point is, meliorn is super powerful, they are super smart, they have knowledge of the mundane, shadowhunter and etc cultures - and after the whole previous fiasco with the jonathan thing and the seelies having been basically kept from the other realms, despite the fact that as parts of nature, seelies should be able to wander between them as they please, i think they would want to start a radically new external policy, and who better than meliorn to help them do it? so yeah i think they would choose meliorn to be their queen. besides, they love the seelies more than anything. they might have disobeyed seelie law, but that was to like, save a whole ass realm lmao, but they’ve always had the seelies best interests at heart, hell, they were willing to be tortured twice for them. so i think they would be well liked, and want this new position, and treasure it not as a display of power, but as an opportunity to lead the people they love into better times

DISCLAIMER: i’m not saying that seelies bad or whatever, okay. tbh i do understand perfectly why they would want to close off their realm with the very real threat that shadowhunters presented, and i wouldn’t be dying to integrate with shadowhunter society either, especially considering that their idea of integration was just genocide and assimilation and the destruction of their culture. okay? but in the process, the seelie law and realm became cruel, first and foremost, towards seelies themselves, and the banishment of them from other realms is. very bad. and after the whole jonathan and valentine thing, the shadow society as a whole is being reconstructed, so what better time to try and create new alliances that won’t implicate into attempts of assimilation, etnocide and so on. it’s a new bet, basically, one that is only possible because shadowhunter society is also in shambles after the near destruction of the world, and this means that seelies have more leverage to try and build something new without yielding to them. and it’s a SLOW process, one that takes years and always has the seelies best interest’s, not the shadowhunter’s or anyone else’s, at heart, okay? and it implicates in shadowhunters giving them many concessions, and the strongest alliances between them are and will always be with the other downworlders - this is also something they are working on, making the different downworlder cultures closer and stronger politically, aiding each other mutually and helping each other reach their political goals. together, the downworlder societies are unbeatable, and the shadowhunters basically have no choice but to accept their demands, especially after so much destruction. plus, at least some of them are slightly more willing to. but it’s mostly a vicious political battle that takes all of them years, not to say decades, to settle

but the fact that the seelies are willing to do it and getting stronger relationships with warlocks and vampires and werewolves (and hoo here i come with my “maia and raphael start a vampires/werewolves alliance” hc because look that rivalry thing is STUPID and i want to see downworlder societies coming closer together and healing after being very obviously pitted against each other due to shadowhunter supremacy) is also what, well, allows the whole thing to happen. they are powerful, and the shadowhunters have no way of taking them on a war, much less now that their forces are well, fragile to say the least

in short! they have leverage now. and that makes it possible for them to try a new external policy that wasn’t in the table before, and their main interest in doing that is helping themselves, because seelies are tired of living in constant fear in a basically military state where they’re confined to the same realm despite them being supposed to be guardians of all of them. like that’s gotta affect their mental health, if they’re one with nature, wouldn’t being kept away from it be like being isolated from your loved ones? isn’t that deprivation? so like. this is about them, not the shadowhunters and how great their society is and how much they want to be a part of them, okay

anyway! so the seelies have designed a plan (because under meliorn’s rule everyone participates in political decisions because hmmm *checks notes* i said so) to make stronger alliances with the other downworlders. the first thing they offer them all is a little token of alliance. to vampires, they offer the possibility of becoming a dayligher - something they can easily do with their angel magic, not to mention, you know, blood -; to werewolves, magical amulets that help them keep their wolf under control, not turning without meaning to and being able to live a relatively normal life if they so choose; and to warlocks, knowledge of seelie magic

and of course magnus in particular eats that shit right UP because he’s a naturally curious person and a genius and a physichist and holy shit i love him so fucking much. seelies have so much more knowledge of physics and magic and their natural workings, so much so that it makes him dizzy because hell, the possibilities, and all the shit he can learn, okay. all this knowledge that was currently being kept away, and the warlocks get to learn about it (or well, part of it. obviously the seelies aren’t going to go around spilling EVERYTHING to them all at once before they even know if their token is accepted and whatnot. but they do teach those who are interested a lot of stuff, maybe create some sort of seelie-warlock magical school/course/programme/look you GET IT to strengthen their relationships as a whole?? boy i eat that shit UP). he’s just losing his mind here

super cute to think about alec coming home to find a very disheveled magnus surrounded by books and notes, hair and clothes rumpled and just a whole mess as he excitedly reads and writes and runs around to get a different book and draw parallels, okay. and alec smiles and has to be like “have you eaten?” and magnus looks up from his books all suddenly like “hm? oh hello alexander, i didn’t see you there”, “have you eaten?” “i don’t remember” “okay, i’ll make you something, you can keep reading” and magnus smiling all like “thank you” and diving right back into the notes in Super Hyperfocus + Hyperfixation Mode as he figures out, like, a thousand new spells (obviously warlocks can’t use seelie magic because they come from different sources they don’t have access to, but like, the knowledge is enough for them to create so much new stuff okay), btw. but anyway, ANYWAY

and to shadowhunters the seelies offer, i dont know, a soggy cheeto or something faiojdsajdasj look it’s not like the seelies owe them so they basically offer a truce and maybe authorization to explore certain parts of the seelie realm in small guarded groups? i dont know, in exchange for them and all other downworlders having a power and a vote in the new shadowhunter laws, and the whole proccess of reconstruction of their society. and the shadowhunters agree, after vicious infighting of course

so anyway years pass and things are blossoming, downworlder societies are stronger than ever and phucking florishing dude, shadowhunters suck less, seelies finally get to wander around like they’ve been wanting to for centuries, there’s been some neato cultural exchange, magnus is still figuring out spells and shit at an alarming rate to anyone who doesn’t know what a goddamn genius he is. and shadowhunter society is- well, changing, but there’s a kind of cultural war going on, you know, with such a strong shift in paradigm so sudden. the changes in schooling and shit that were brought on by the new accords kind of ensure that the newest generations are getting a very different view and education, but there’s still a lot of infighting from shadowhunters who want to undo all that hard work, which is of course still fragile because it’s only starting

and alec of course takes a primary role in that fight, being the greatest representative of the progressive shadowhunters’ (?) and their downworlder allies’ interests, inside shadowhunter society. like don’t get me wrong it’s not like he’s leading the downworlders, the downworlders are doing all that hard work so they can get their own destiny back into their own hands and not be led by shadowhunters anymore, but within shadowhunter society, alec is a leader and their greatest ally slash eye in the inside, defending the policies that downworlders create and letting them know what is going on inside of the clave. basically preparing a cultural war. you get it

so naturally alec is a threat to conservative shadowhunters and they’re trying to strip him off his runes all the time, and there’s even been a few (quickly failed) assassination attempts, you know, the whole. drama. and he plays an important role for this whole game, and magnus has been studying the whole immortality ritual thing, and yeah, the seelies offer to put him through the ritual

it’s a matter of political leverage (and okay maybe a personal favor to meliorn’s dear friend magnus, but like, mostly political leverage). first of all, making alec immortal gives him a lot of power within shadowhunter society, not unlike meliorn and being the child of super powerful parents. second of all, no need to worry about assassination attempts, they can’t fucking kill him! third of all, clear message - alec has powerful allies, way more powerful than the shadowhunters can dream of, and if shadowhunter society is willing to create real, lasting equality with downworlders, they have a lot to gain. if not, they have a lot to lose, because the seelies have literal power over life and death. also, alec better watch his step, too, because, you know. he owes them that one. they are not stupid, they know alec has been looking for a way of becoming immortal for years now, know how much he desires this. it’s also about keeping his loyalty, and making sure he doesn’t forget, he’s supposed to be their ally too

and there are a lot of like, security things in place. alec will not be able to see or hear anything, he will not be taught how the ritual works (not even warlocks know that yet), he will not be taught about its forces, it will happen in the seelie realm and he will go alone, and no other shadowhunter will be granted that unless the seelies themselves offer at a later time, you know, etc etc. they list off things and precautions he has to agree to for like, half an hour, and honestly they could have added “alec will have to eat a piece of the moon” and alec would be like “okay fine great let’s do this”

magnus is fucking terrified

first, because well, they have never attempted to do that on someone who isn’t a seelie, and while they have figured out a pretty damn good understanding of how it works and are pretty sure it should go smoothly, there’s no way to actually tell. it might not work. alec might regret it. does he really want this? to become immortal? he doesn’t have to say yes, and magnus will not be upset, because he would never, ever demand such a huge sacrifice from him-

and alec’s like “nope i want this let’s go” which only terrifies magnus more because it feels like he’s being impulsive, you know? and he doesn’t know if there’s any turning back from this. but alec is like “magnus, when have i ever been impulsive? i’m not impulsive, i’m just sure of what i want, and there’s no reason to dwell on it because that’s already done.” alec is an expert at dwelling on things, and when he makes a decision, it’s because that part has already been thoroughly done, with every single possible argument being exhausted and taken apart minuciously and careful. there’s no room for doubt anymore, because if there had even a spectre of it, alec would still be ruminating. he doesn’t make a decision until he’s sure, but by god, once he makes it, he is sure, and nothing will stop him

so he reassures magnus of that (“hey, look at me. i’m not doing this on a whim. i have been looking for something like this for years. i’ve given it a lot of thought. besides, the seelies reasoning is good, too; i do want to have the time to dedicate myself to these changes, to building a new society, and with that, i can do it. there’s so much i want to live and see and do, magnus. and i want to do it by your side, yes, always, forever, but it’s not just about that. this is my decision. i’m not doing it for you. you won’t owe me anything because of it. you won’t have to make it up for it. because i’m doing it for myself. okay?”) and magnus kind of chokes up and hugs him and cries because he’s so overwhelmed by everything, the fear and the adoration and the relief of knowing that alec isn’t doing this just because of him, because if he had, magnus would forever feel like he was ruining his life, like he was indebted, like he would have to make up for it. but alec wants this. truly. and he doesn’t have to- worry anymore, this constant weight in his head, that tells him this has an expiration date, you’re gonna lose him. look at how much time you’re wasting with all of this, he’ll be gone before you even notice. there’ll be no turning back, and you’ll regret it forever. and fuck it’s just- so much, okay

so alec hugs him and they repeat to each other, i love you, i love you, i love you, and the next day, alec accepts the seelies’ offer.

and magnus is- fuck, terrified, because he can’t even go with him, can’t even watch. there’s nothing he can do but wait

but everything goes relatively smoothly and alec emerges from the seelie realm exactly as before, no change to be noted, not even when magnus scanned him with his magic - it’s all still there. still a shadowhunter, still the same runes, the same face, the same hazel eyes, the same smile and voice, and when he hugs and kisses magnus, it feels like just the same

and then i suppose alec can now, like, talk to trees or something, since he’s connected to the whole force of nature and whatnot. i don’t think he would be able to use magic, because like i said, he’s still the same and a shadowhunter so it’s more that his angelic magic is stronger? but he’s fucking immortal dude, and he can like talk to trees, which is at the very least funny as hell (cracky images of alec discussing with some shadowhunter asshole and he’s like, even your SUCCULENT is tired of you!! but i digress)

anyway the point is, it works both in the sense of immortal alec, baby! and the whole political leverage thing, and they basically revolutionize all of shadowhunter society and alec lives to see the results of that besides magnus, and meliorn is the greatest seelie queen ever, and the downworlder societies are all happy and blossoming and getting their best life, and everyone is happy, and the bigoted shadowhunters die and are hated by their own plants. the end

18 notes · View notes

thesorrowoflizards · 4 years

Text

yall we deserve more fairy tale aus. more maiaphael and/or magnus fairy tale aus

the beautiful princess maia, strong in her own right but so soft and kind and she just wants to help even though she’s not in a great position to do so

brave young hero raphael questing not for the princess’s hand but to help his community, his family, his sister (but he falls in love with her anyway)

“fairy godfather” magnus, a kind wizard who helps them out and indeed helps anyone he can… and perhaps dragon alec

but like the point is—oh my god

oh no

oh no mid post

mid post the idea it hit me

literally while i was in the middle of typing trying to figure out where i was going with this

ive been, metaphorically speaking, shot blank

with the idea

maiaphael

shrek au

oh I hate this

does this make maia fiona, raphael shrek, and magnus—DONKEY?! AND ALEC THE DRAGO—ok ok so this is happening now. amazing. i just wanted a soft fairy tale au with princess maia and hero raphael and kindly wizard magnus but now here we are. shrek au. fine. if this is how it’s gonna be, fine

i guess rather than ogre he’s a vampire which is a little more subtle—perhaps instead of becoming a vampire at night she’s a werewolf? so downworlders in general rather than specifically a vampire? not quite loyal to the original story (as she became an ogre rather than just “a fairy tale creature” for a reason) but not bad—although the implication she’d like become a wolf forever isn’t great. I mean I’m sure you can play with that so it’s more like at night she becomes a werewolf—ability to transform into a wolf, eyes flash green sometimes, can do feats of supernatural strength and so on, but like. still. hm

but like ok look the point is maia is in this tower and it’s not that she’s weak, but she can’t fight a dragon on her own and she’s been taught her whole life she was supposed to be saved, get a prince charming, etc. she’s quite well read and also very isolated and probably claustrophobic as fuck now. i’m not sure how to combine her characterization with fiona’s in a way that stays loyal to her character but still makes sense in the au tbh.... [thinking emoji im too lazy to google and paste here]

and like raphael, rather than wanting everyone out of his home, perhaps is specifically trying to help his community and get more structure? obviously magnus wants to help—still can’t believe I’m making him donkey but the dragon thing is too good to pass up, although I’m basically going to completely change his role as donkey because I physically can’t handle making him the comic relief literal ass, but like, he’s had his own issues and also wants to help get the land to set up a home for everyone and help people, so he’s travelling with raphael and is like “smol angery vampire who is willing to slap a dragon to death to save his community and specifically take care of his sister? im adopting him immediately”

perhaps for shenanigans and I have. oh my god this is ridiculous but any shrek au is inherently ridiculous so I’m making this twi malec now. consider this: twi magnus on the road literally just getting the hang of his magic after an encounter with a rogue crazy princess who’s stab-happy and needed some magical help, so it’s waking up and he’s just getting in all these crazy hijinks with raphael where hypothetically he’s powerful enough to just zap them there, zoink out the dragon and win, but he can’t fucking control it so sure he can turn all the knights’ armor pink or sneeze and make it start to rain (which is a LITTLE SCARY) but like, other than randomly floating or random bursts of managing to control it in high pressure situations, it’s like. not that useful. again i can’t be clear enough he isn’t really donkey it’s just an excuse to have him travelling with raphael. i guess simon would be donkey if i were going for serious but then they’d both be in love with maia so--

also, twi magnus and raphael? fun interaction time. especially since I’m still basically doing canon maiaphael and not trying to mess with twi, there, so like. he’s kind of trying to get out of his shell more but he cares deeply about raphael (and. well. everyone) already and he juts wants to help

and then he meets the dragon guarding maia’s tower and is immediately like….. damn……… no not getting distracted by this

but the dragon, twi alec, is just like HEY THERE PRETTY BOY ;D and like. they don’t even have to fight the dragon raphael just. walks past while they make heart eyes at each other and when alec realizes they’re walking away with maia he’s just like “ok whatever but magnus you better come back and visit sweetheart I’m gonna make you the prettiest necklace and I can find you some old books on magic, I’m sure I’ve got some in my hoard somewhere—”

meanwhile on the way back magnus is kind of pining after alec but also getting a stronger handle on his magic

and raphael is getting to know the princess

and maia is getting to know raphael (she was NOT expecting a vampire and a warlock, but they’re both incredibly nice and she was REALLY REALLY BORED in that tower) and just like…. you know,,,,,,, romance begins to bloom mayhaps

now I don’t know how to like really get across that one of their main commonalities is community, because in this scenario maia wouldn’t have a pack—unless we change canon even more and I’m just not going to rn, but put a pin in that

so like, maybe she really does care about her people and she super is a people person, but she hasn’t had many chances to show that because she’s been fucking locked up and that’s kind of messed with her you know

god you know I want to include jordan and camille here but I wouldn’t even know how to—I imagine jordan could be prince charming but he doesn’t come in until later and ehhh

so like raphael (and also magnus) are really helping her with that

and she’s also helping him be less closed off and… angry isn’t quite right, but like. she kind of helps both of them open up tbh. not to erase magnus’s friends but also I love a good magnus and maia friendship? but like she’s not afraid to start conversations or ask them questions or listen to their stories (and they listen to hers which is nice because she’s been talking mostly to walls and stuffed animals for a while now and books are great but it’s not the same)

and like she’s free not to have to act like a perfect delicate princess, but she’s also free to be vulnerable and soft too you know

so like okay also lord farquaad or however you spell it I don’t care is jace. I mean obviously annoying lord tiny penis is jace. duh. (oh my god does this mean alec eats jace--?)

and like idk this is a very scattered concept—I’m not sure these communication kings would really do the main plot of shrek where an overheard misunderstood snippet of conversation leads to such a huge conflict but I mean if he was really just beginning to open up to her and then he thought she thought downworlders were disgusting or whatever (wait no that wouldn’t work because she can’t say vampires but she can’t be saying that to magnus, either—fuck I don’t know like I said it needs reworking to fit) he could be devastated enough to just be like well fuck it

AND LIKE AGAIN. DRAGON ALEC. EATS JACE. amazing. everyones like “raphael is your friend... fucking a dragon” and raphael is like “please never say those words to me again” and alec’s like (in human form, they don’t realize he’s the dragon even tho raphael does) “actually a dragon is fucking raphael’s friend” and raphael is like shut the fuck up right now

idk I feel like a lot of details make it not work but the overall concept could be fun as hell, probably mostly as a crack au

god I just wanted a fairy tale au. soft princess maia, young hero raphael, kindly wizard magnus. goin’ on a quest. savin’ people. is that too much to ask for???

my brain says yes.

#maiaphael #maia roberts #raphael santiago #malec #magnus bane #alec lightwood #shadowhunters #im so sorry #i just wanted to do a maiaphael post for ur maiaphael blog but i made this abomination and i would not blame you if you didn't reblog it

5 notes · View notes

malecsecretsanta · 5 years

Text

Merry Christmas, @Ohfreckle!

Happy holidays, ohfreckle! I hope you enjoy! <3

Read on AO3

******

Fingertips

In hindsight, Alec should probably have known better than to bother trying to patrol on the Solstice. It's a holdover from his parents' era, when relations with the Downworld were much more tense, as well as a mark of a generally suspicious mindset that he's trying very hard to move the Institute away from. Yes, the Seelies get up to all kinds of nonsense on the Solstice; yes, there will probably be a few confused Mundanes talking about the odd goings-on in Central Park the next day, and all of Manhattan will smell like juniper and sage for the next week if it's anything like it has been the past few years, but there never actually seem to be any serious problems that the Seelies aren't perfectly capable of dealing with amongst themselves. It's a night of revelry, of spectacle, but it's not usually a night of mischief. Hell, the wolves usually get up to way more trouble on New Year's Eve, and he doesn't bother trying to keep an eye on them. The whole thing with the Seelies and the Solstice, the level of inherent suspicion that he still finds himself unlearning — it's ridiculous. It's archaic. It's pointless.

It's never bitten him in the ass this badly before, though.

"You're going to be fine," Magnus reassures him, his hands glowing as he runs them over Alec's neck and shoulders, trying to diagnose whatever the hell it is the Seelie knight Alec had stopped from drunkenly trying to bring the Balto statue to life had then hit him with. He's kneeling on the floor, between Alec's legs; Alec is perched on the edge of the couch, still in his patrol gear, mostly, and trying very hard not to get city grime and miscellaneous splashes of Seelie-related mess all over the furniture. "I can already tell that much. This doesn't feel malicious at all."

Ostensibly, he's conducting a thorough and careful inspection, to make sure Alec isn't about to start growing extra limbs, walking through walls, glowing in the dark, or Raziel only knows what else. He mostly seems amused, though, at the fact that whatever the spell had been, it had also involved getting Alec absolutely covered in glitter — though that may actually have just been a side effect of trying to physically restrain the Seelie in question.

"I know," Alec grumbles, fighting the urge to pout. Really, he's not sure what he's got to complain about; "I need to go find Magnus and make sure whatever this was isn't going to kill me, since the guy who did it isn't coherent enough to reliably tell me himself" had proven to be an absolutely flawless excuse to call off his patrol early, and it's not like he's upset about getting home sooner than he'd thought he would and therefore getting to spend that much extra time with Magnus. It just feels slightly less than dignified to have to be inspected for the side effects of drunken Seelie magic like he’s fresh out of the Shadowhunter Academy, that's all. Plus, the glitter is itchy, and he can feel it all over him, a fine, gritty, uncomfortable layer. It's making him feel hot, and he shifts slightly, trying to get comfortable.

"I'm beginning to doubt that he really did anything to you at all, actually," Magnus muses, running his hands over Alec's abdomen now. "That is, he certainly blasted you with magic, but I'm not sure it actually had any effect. He may have thought you were also a Seelie, and tried to do something that doesn't actually work on mortals, or..." He trails off, a little crease appearing in his brow, and Alec looks down to see that while his hands have stilled, the magic around them seems to be pulsing. "No, all right, there's definitely something."

Alec shoves his sleeves up to his elbows, idly scratching at his forearms. The longer he sits here, the hotter and itchier and less comfortable he seems to feel, which is a little strange; one of the wonderful things about living with the High Warlock of Brooklyn is that the climate control is always perfect. The loft keeps itself perfectly adjusted to the preferences of its inhabitants, except right now, Alec can feel sweat starting to gather at the small of his back. He frowns.

"There's something, all right," he says. "I feel..."

Magnus glances up at him and must find something alarming in his face, because he immediately lowers his hands, the glow of his magic fading away. "What's wrong?"

"I don't know," Alec says at first, then changes his mind. "It's hot. I feel —"

But he finds that he can’t get out the rest of the sentence. It's as if he can't quite focus, his thoughts wanting to do anything possible except go in a straight line. He grimaces slightly, and then frowns more deeply when Magnus' hands come up to cup his face, one thumb brushing over his cheekbones. Magnus' touch is cooling, but almost uncomfortably so, the feeling like a shock to his system.

"You don't feel hot to me," Magnus says, half to himself, "so the effect isn't physical, whatever it is — though of course that doesn't mean it can't be physically damaging... Do you feel anything else? Dizzy? Numb?"

"Not numb," Alec says. On the contrary, there's a bit of a tingling sensation in his extremities, now that he stops to think about it. "Itchy, though — can you get right of the damn glitter?"

Magnus nods, then snaps. There's a beat, and then he frowns and snaps again. He doesn't bother doing it a third time, though he does reach out to try and physically brush the glitter away, which isn't any more effective than trying to remove it with magic had been.

"Ah," he says. Then, suddenly, his eyes narrow. "You said you felt hot? Itchy? Are you confused — are you having trouble focusing?"

"Yes," Alec says. "I’m — do you know what it is, then?"

"I might," Magnus mutters, his hands glowing blue with magic again. "I think I was looking in the wrong — ah."

Alec shifts, squints, shivers a little. "Ah?"

Not meeting his eyes, Magnus curses, his hands flaring even more brightly blue as he sweeps them in broad strokes all around Alec's body. "It may not have been malicious, but it is dangerous," he says. "I was right, too, when I said he must have mistaken you for another Seelie — but I was wrong in saying that that must have made the magic less effective. It did the opposite."

"It's worse?" Alec says. "It — made it worse?"

"Yes," Magnus says tightly, and then all at once the magic seems to burst outward from his hands and sweep through Alec's entire body, every cell lighting up with the bite of cold, where normally Magnus' magic feels quite warm to him. "Oh, damn it, sometimes I hate being right."

"Magnus, please just tell me what's wrong," Alec begs, squeezing his eyes shut tight for a moment. "I need to — should I go back to the Institute? Should I go try to track down the Seelie? What's wrong?"

"Nothing will be wrong if we handle this quickly," Magnus says. "Luckily, I think we've caught it in plenty of time — it's a good thing you came straight here. But it is a bit of a nasty piece of work, so we have to take it seriously. I hate messing with Seelie magic," he mutters as an aside, wrinkly his nose. "So messy."

"Magnus."

"Sorry," Magnus says, exhaling sharply through his nose. "It's just a little — well. To put it bluntly, Alexander, it's a sex spell."

"Oh," Alec says, a little blankly. Then, slowly, the thought filters through his mind properly, and he starts to get mad. "It — so he roofied me?"

"That's one way to look at it, yes," Magnus says, squeezing his eyes shut tight for a moment and pinching the bridge of his nose. He's clearly frustrated, but strangely, Alec feels remarkably calmer now that he knows that — however unintentionally — a Seelie sprayed him with sex glitter. It makes everything make just a little bit more sense, from the way his skin still feels hot and stretched thin over his frame to the way he feels his eyes going a little heavy-lidded. And it definitely explains the way his throat goes dry when he looks at Magnus, though that one's not exactly out of the ordinary.

"Is it going to wear off?" Alec asks, his voice slurring slightly. The longer he sits here, the more intense everything seems to feel, and either he's crazy, or it's accelerating, each passing moment speeding faster and faster towards — something. He doesn’t quite know what, but given the nature of the spell, he can obviously guess.

Magnus frowns again, but opens his eyes, his hands dropping to move in slow, sweeping arcs around Alec's body once again. "It should," he says a little dubiously, and then immediately swears again. "Unless all the ways you're different from a Seelie mean that the effects won't fade like they should."

Alec frowns. That, obviously, does not sound good. "What do you mean?"

"Well, I can’t really be certain," Magnus says, but his tone is grim enough that Alec knows the caveat probably isn't worth much. "But if I'm understanding the impact this is having on you correctly, it's not going to just — go away the way it should. For a Seelie, this is just a harmless little party drug. But Seelie drugs are complicated; angel blood and demon blood combined allows for some complex physiological effects. But you, Alexander—" He laughs, short and sharp. "You only have half the puzzle pieces. You don't have demon blood, so instead of fading in a couple of hours, we can either give the magic what it wants, or..."

He doesn't say exactly what, but the way he trails off is more than enough. Alec doesn't exactly like to talk about the possibility of Magnus being hurt or dying, either; he more than understands not actually wanting to say the words.

"Well—" he says, trying to keep his own voice relatively even. "Well, then what does it — what does it want? What do we need to give it?"

Magnus grimaces a little. "It's a sex spell, remember?"

"Oh!" Alec replies, taken aback. The relief is so immediate and overwhelming that he doesn't even stop to think, at first, about why Magnus would still sound so upset if the solution is that simple. "Oh, well then that's — that's easy, isn't it?"

"Easy," Magnus says. He sounds bitter, Alec realizes with shock, and unhappy, and clearly Alec is missing something very key, here, because he can't fathom what it is that would suddenly make the idea of having sex with him make Magnus sound like that. His immediate thought is that he must have done something wrong, and anxiety snakes through him in an instant, but — Magnus hasn't moved away from him, hasn't tried to put any distance between them. He has to try and keep himself from jumping to conclusions, has to —

"Do you not want to?" he blurts, and then immediately winces, even before he has a chance to take in Magnus' look of blank shock.

There's a moment of silence before either of them manages to say anything after that, and then when Magnus does manage to say something, his voice actually cracks on his surprise.

"What — Alec, it's not about whether I want to," he says, very much with the air of someone who has been shocked into blunt honesty. "I'm not the one who's being held at metaphorical gunpoint. The problem is whether or not you want to — or not even that, it's whether or not you have the option of saying no, even if you do want to."

Another pause, as Alec's mouth drops open and he tries for several long seconds to formulate an answer that's even slightly intelligible. "But it's you," he says eventually. He feels a little stupid saying it, and his voice is bewildered even to his own ears. "I mean — how long have we been having sex? Why is this different?"

"Because you don't have the ability to say no!" Magnus says, his voice close to boiling over with a potent mixture of worry and frustration. "Whether or not you would doesn't matter in this case as much as the fact that you can't. I know that you wouldn't. I believe you. But I don't like that you couldn't. I don’t like that some — some Seelie whose name I’ll never know took that away from you, however unintentionally."

Alec frowns a little, squints at the intense, unreadable look on Magnus' face, and reaches over a little hesitantly to clasp his hand. "Look," he says, keeping his voice as level and clear as possible, though his mind feels anything but. "I'm not sure I can really have this conversation right now. I mean, I'm — it's all a little—" He gestures wildly with the hand that's not holding Magnus', trying his best to convey the way it feels like he's trying to think through syrup, slow and sticky and sweet. "But I — I understand that you're not huge on the circumstances. I'm pretty sure I understand why? But maybe we can... you know, when I'm less..."

He gestures again, and Magnus reaches up to snatch his hand out of the air before he can get very animated.

"'I'm too impaired to even have this conversation, so we should just go ahead and have sex and talk about it later' is not the watertight argument you probably think it is," he says dryly. Then he sighs, slow and audibly frustrated, and squeezes both of Alec's hands where he's brought them to settle in his lap. "But, unfortunately, in this situation, I think you might be right. It's not like I can just sit around a few hours and wait for you to sober up..."

Magnus still doesn't sound entirely comfortable, so Alec tries his best to be cautious and respectful when he leans in to kiss him, just a gentle brush of lips. "I'm sorry," he says, the thought clearer and more sobering than any he's had in a while. "I don't want to put you in a position like this."

"It's all right, Alexander," Magnus says softly, squeezing his hands again. "It's not as though it’s your fault, and... well, to your own point, it's not as though this isn't how the night would have ended anyway, more likely than not. We just have a few additional wrinkles to work through with the situation that we weren't expecting."

"Right," Alec breathes. "Wrinkles."

When he leans in to kiss Magnus again, it's significantly less cautious, though he does still pull away after just a few seconds, not really giving Magnus an opportunity to respond in kind. He leans back just enough to tempt Magnus forward, and the gambit works: Magnus shifts from being on his knees on the floor to crawling up into Alec's lap with sinuous grace, his eyes glittering. By the time he's got one knee on either side of Alec's hips, Alec is breathing hard, his chest heaving at nothing more than the teasing press of Magnus' legs through the double layer of their pants and the slight, reluctant quirk of his mouth.

"Magnus," he says, or rather, croaks; his chest feels tight, his heart pounding in his throat. Magnus smiles at him with only a hint of reluctance remaining, arms wrapping around him, hands scratching and catching in the hair at the nape of his neck.

"I'm sure it's starting to get a little uncomfortable for you," he murmurs, his eyes flickering down from Alec's eyes to his lips to the hollow of his throat. "Seelie drugs are just as dangerous for me as they are for you — you don't have demon blood, I don't have angel blood... So I don't have any personal experience, but I've certainly known those who were more than willing to take the risk. I've heard stories."

For all that he's on edge and humming with arousal, Alec hasn't actually taken much time, to this point, to realize the impact of the drug on him physically, other than how hot and sensitive he still feels. It takes only one brief, gentle roll of Magnus' hips, though, for him to realize that those lesser sensations have just been there to distract him. Magnus presses their cocks together, even through multiple layers of fabric, and Alec gasps out loud, the sound shockingly sudden and inescapable in the otherwise-quiet loft.

"That's what I thought," Magnus hums, his eyes crinkling slightly at the corners. Then, without any sort of warning, he ducks down to nip at Alec's jaw, his earlobe, his throat, trailing little kisses and bites inexorably downward until he finally reaches the point where Alec's neck connects with his shoulder. There, he bites down with significantly more force, licks over the bite with warm, wet flashes of tongue, and then sucks, just hard enough to really entice but not quite hard enough to satisfy the pulsing need that's settling low in Alec's abdomen.

"Raziel," he hisses under his breath, his hands fluttering uselessly up and down Magnus' sides. Magnus bites him again, and he curses even louder, his voice breaking in the middle of the word: "Fuck. Magnus, I don't know if I can—"

"No teasing tonight?" Magnus says, pulling back just far enough to look Alec in the eyes again. He takes the opportunity offered by this slightly greater distance to start working at Alec's clothes, pushing his jacket down off his shoulders and slipping his arms from the sleeves, and then working his hands up under the t-shirt underneath until he can strip it quickly off over Alec's head. "Now that's a crying shame."

"Tease me on nights when it doesn't have life-or-death consequences," Alec breathes, just before pulling Magnus toward him by looping his arms around his neck and kissing him soundly, nipping at his lower lip in retaliation for the bruise that will no doubt bloom under his collar by the morning.

"Oh, you're not that close to the edge, I think," Magnus says as they pull apart. His voice is still even, but his breathing is certainly not, Alec notes with satisfaction; he starts working on his own shirt as he talks, though his eyes never leave Alec. "You've got several hours yet before you'd really start to feel the ill effects, and even then you'd have a few hours more before it got truly dangerous."

"I’m not so sure about taking that chance," Alec replies, reaching out to help him with the buttons down the front of his silky blue top. “Better safe than sorry.”

Magnus hums dismissively, but he flings his shirt aside to join Alec’s and then places his hands just over Alec’s ribs, starting a steady trail downwards that’s totally counter to the aloofness he’s trying to portray. He fingers the button on Alec’s jeans, gaze flicking up so that their eyes lock, and then he pauses a moment, his hands stiling again.

“You’re sure?” he says, quietly. His eyes flicker over Alec’s face.

“Of course I’m sure,” Alec replies, feeling almost unbearably fond. He feels like the sentiment might need a little proof, though — just in case — so he leans down, catching Magnus’ face between his hands and kissing him and kissing him until absolutely every thought has gone out of his own head. When he surfaces again, his pants are gone, or at least shoved far enough down his thighs that they’re out of the way, and Magnus has one hand curled loosely around the base of his cock.

Alec makes an almost wounded little noise when Magnus’ hand flexes, his grip tightening almost imperceptibly and then loosening again. Magnus responds with his own wordless noise: a considering hum accompanied by another little squeeze.

“You really are feeling it, though, aren’t you?” he asks, his tone wondering. Alec doesn’t bother answering, or even nodding; he just keens a little, presses his hips up into Magnus’ touch, and throws his head back, his eyes fluttering shut.

It’s over remarkably quickly after that — perhaps unsurprising, given how worked up Alec is, how hot and close and sensitive everything feels. Magnus barely gets a few good strokes in before Alec is choking on his own breath, his whole body gone taut with need; if not for the chemical influence, the amount of time it takes for him to double over, pressing his face into the crook of Magnus’ neck, and come all over his hands would be positively embarrassing.

There’s a long pause in the aftermath, the silence broken only by their heavy breathing. Alec’s eyes are almost entirely shut, so he feels more than sees the familiar little flicking motion that Magnus uses to get rid of the come, but his eyes struggle open when Magnus says “Oh!”, a soft sound of surprise. When Alec looks down, he sees the Seelie glitter fading off of his skin, disappearing in patches until, in mere moments, it’s as though it was never even there at all.

“Well,” he says after a moment, turning his arm this way and that to make sure that all of the glitter is truly gone. “That was easy, after all that.”

Magnus hums an assent, grabbing Alec’s other hand to flip it around and run his fingers over it himself, likewise checking for any remaining traces of glitter and, based on the way he nods and then squeezes Alec’s hand in his own, finding none. “I’m still not exactly thrilled that you got blasted by Seelie sex magic without your consent, but… yes. It certainly seems to be gone now.”

Alec smiles at him, leaning down for a light peck on the lips. “It wasn’t exactly how I was expecting my night to go, but it also didn’t turn out to be the end of the world,” he says, squeezing Magnus’ hand right back. “I love you. I knew you’d figure out what it was, and figure out how to fix it. I trusted you. And, hey — it worked out pretty well, as far as I’m concerned.”

“I guess you did get your happy ending.”

“Mmm,” Alec agrees, then narrows his eyes a little, his voice dropping into a slightly lower register. “And the night’s not exactly over yet.”

“Alexander,” Magnus replies, dropping Alec’s hand so that he can link his arms behind Alec’s neck instead, his eyes glittering. “Whatever could you mean?”

“Let’s go to bed,” Alec murmurs. “No offense to the Seelies, but I don’t really need anything extra for a night with you.”

“I couldn’t have said it better myself,” Magnus replies, and as Magnus draws him up and towards the bedroom, Alec finds it’s easy enough to forget the hot, itchy feeling of glitter on his skin and replace it with the feeling of Magnus’ touch instead.

#Ohfreckle #malecsanta19 #*fics19 #*gifts19

25 notes · View notes

glorious-spoon · 5 years

Text

Knight in Shining Armor

This is for a twitter prompt I got a while ago for Malec fic where Magnus is sick or hurt and Alec has to look after him.

Also on AO3: Knight in Shining Armor

He doesn’t actually realize that something is really wrong until they make it into the cabin, which is dark and smells faintly musty. Magnus pulls the door shut behind him as Alec moves deeper into the room, wrinkling his nose. It’s not going to be the most pleasant place to spend the night, but he’s pretty sure that if Magnus tries to make a portal in this condition they’ll end up at the bottom of the Mariana Trench or something.

“Well,” he says. “There’s a bed, anyway. Luke said there should be some canned food in here and the water’s hooked up, so…”

He trails off as he turns. Magnus is tilted against the door, head back, eyes closed, hands hanging loosely at his sides. Eventually, he lifts a hand to rub clumsily at his face, then opens his eyes. It’s hard to tell in the dim light, but they don’t look like they’re entirely focused, and there’s a grayish tinge to his skin. Worried, Alec takes a step closer. “Are you okay?”

“Fine, darling,” Magnus murmurs. His eyes slide shut again. He shifts, bracing one palm against the door like he’s trying to stand up, then almost stumbles before Alec catches him. His sturdy frame feels unnervingly loose-limbed, and his skin is cooler than it should be. Magnus always runs hot; a quirk of warlock biology, he explained once, but right now his skin is clammy to the touch.

“You don’t seem fine.”

“I’m…” Magnus trails off, takes a breath. He makes a soft noise against Alec’s throat, then murmurs, softly, “fuck.”

“What is it?” Alec asks, something close to panic flaring up in him. Magnus’s magic is drained to nearly nothing, and there’s no cell signal up here. Short of him hiking down the mountain and leaving Magnus alone for however long it takes him to get help, they’re on their own.

The latter is an option, but it’s not one he wants to take. Not unless he really has to. The idea of leaving Magnus here like this, alone and undefended and barely able to stand, isn’t something he can countenance.

“Nothing,” Magnus murmurs.

“Right,” Alec says, loading his tone with doubt. He loops his arm around Magnus and starts pulling him toward the bed, which is covered in a slightly dusty-looking quilt. Magnus doesn’t protest or try to pull away, which is all the more worrying. He just allows Alec to settle him onto the mattress and kneel down to pull his boots off; when Alec looks up, he’s still upright but swaying slightly, his eyes unfocused, face slack. “Come on. Let’s get your jacket off.”

“Are you trying to strip me, Alexander?” Magnus asks. There’s a faint curl of a smile on his face, but the words come out soft and slurry, like he’s either concussed or very, very drunk.

Not for the first time, Alec wishes like hell that his stele could work its healing magic on warlocks. “Yeah. Don’t get any ideas, though. We need to get you under the blankets and warmed up.”

“No promises,” Magnus murmurs. He tilts his head against Alec’s chest as Alec straightens up to unbutton his jacket and tug it off, and doesn’t really do anything to help. “Perhaps that poison is having an effect after all.”

“You think?” Alec mutters. He kicks his own shoes off and sits down on the bed, pulling Magnus down with him until they’re tangled together in a sprawl of limbs. After a moment, he tugs the blanket over both of them. Magnus is still so cold to the touch. “Are you going to be okay? Do I need to go get help? I can probably get a cell signal if I hike up the slope.”

“No,” Magnus murmurs. His eyes are falling shut, his face slack and pale. Alec starts to sit up, and Magnus grips his shoulder with sudden strength and says, more firmly, “No. It’s meant to weaken, not kill. It’ll burn out of my system once my magic is replenished. They weren’t—” he yawns. “They weren’t intending to keep me alive that long.”

Alec breathes out hard, pulling Magnus closer to him and suddenly, fiercely glad that Magnus’s eyes are closed so he can’t see the expression on Alec’s face. “Good thing we got you out.”

“Hmm,” Magnus murmurs into his hair, his hand loosening on Alec’s arm. “My very own knight in shining armor.”

Alec snorts. “Right. Just, you know. If you could do me a favor and not get kidnapped by pissed-off Seelies again, that would be great.”

“I’ll do my very best,” Magnus mumbles, shifting so that he’s curled around Alec, cat-like.

“Do you need anything? Should I get you food, or something?”

“No,” Magnus murmurs. “Just rest. Just…” he trails off for long enough that Alec starts to wonder if he’s fallen asleep, then adds, “just stay?”

“Yeah, okay,” Alec says, pulling him closer. At some point, he probably is going to have to get some food into Magnus, not to mention get a fire started in the wood stove squatted in the corner before the temperature drops too much, but for now--yeah. For now, he’s not going anywhere.

#shadowhunters #malec #malec fic #prompt fic #my fic

84 notes · View notes