Chapter Text
Magnus couldn’t move.
Or, more accurately, he was moving, but he wasn’t in control of anything but his thoughts.
In the depths of his mind, the demon chuckled. You’re not really in control here, either, are you?
Shut up, Magnus tried to say, but his mouth didn’t obey him. Instead, it stretched into a grin, and then Magnus’s arm tossed another fireball in Alec’s direction, which Alec barely dodged.
The demon sneered at Alec with Magnus’s lips, Magnus’s mouth, and he tried to struggle but it was useless. Alec wasn’t even fighting back properly — he clearly didn’t want to hurt Magnus, only feinting at him rather than attacking with intent to kill.
Magnus could see him clearly, forced to watch as the demon forced him back, and back again, while Magnus was impotent, obsolete, caged in his own body. For just a moment, Alec faltered, and Magnus was helpless as a flare of magic slammed into Alec’s side.
“It’s not you, Magnus,” Alec said, breathless, struggling to escape the next blow. “It’s not your fault.”
Of course he’d try to console Magnus, with his last few moments — but that wouldn’t help, if Alec died. Please, Magnus found himself thinking. Fight back, darling, my love — kill me if you need to, but don’t let yourself die—
The demon was taunting Alec again, playing with him. Alec spoke again, still trying to comfort Magnus; the demon was laughing now, and Magnus could feel the foreign joy coursing through his veins, his horror making him recede back into his own mind. Help him, he thought, I need to help him.
Magnus struggled harder, pushing at the limits the demon had imposed on him, trying to escape the cage that was his mind, his body. But the demon was stronger, always stronger — this had been planned, clearly, orchestrated by Asmodeus in an attempt to get Magnus to join him, but Magnus couldn’t bring himself to care about that because Alec was going to die. Magnus’s hands, his magic, were going to kill his husband, and there was nothing Magnus could do but hope—
And then, like a miracle, Alec was holding a seraph blade, and he stabbed it into Magnus’s leg. The demon screamed with Magnus’s throat, but Magnus didn’t care, because the demon was leaving his body in a cloud of black smoke that Alec killed at a blow.
Pure relief bubbled up in Magnus’s heart, as he fell into unconsciousness.
~
When Magnus woke up, Alec was sleeping on the chair beside his bed, half-slumped over and clearly exhausted.
Magnus’s leg was aching faintly — his magic could not, of course, heal an injury from a seraph blade — and Alec seemed unharmed, which was a relief. Magnus could still see in his mind’s eye the horrible burns on his side from where Magnus’s magic had hurt him.
But Alec was here, and he was safe — perhaps not fully healed, but he was alive, and that was all that Magnus needed. He let his eyes drag over Alec’s face, his figure — he looked tired, bags under his eyes, and Magnus wondered vaguely how long he’d been asleep; Alec was still beautiful, though, especially when wearing what appeared to be one of Magnus’s shirts.
Alec’s hand was lying on the bed beside him, palm up as though reaching out to Magnus even in sleep, and Magnus put out his hand to tangle their fingers together. The touch woke Alec, who stirred, brow furrowing. Magnus waited a moment, and then Alec’s eyes blinked open, focusing immediately on Magnus’s face.
“You’re awake!” Alec sat up abruptly, nearly knocking over the chair, but he paid it no mind. “How are you feeling? Are you—”
“I’m perfectly alright, Alexander,” Magnus told him, smiling softly. “If anything, I should be asking you that — is your side—”
“Fully healed, as of yesterday,” Alec replied.
“Yesterday?” Magnus frowned, trying to think — not even Cat could heal an injury like that in only one go, which meant it must’ve been at least two days since the battle. “How long—”
“You’ve been out for the last four days,” Alec answered, guessing what he wanted to ask even before he finished the question. “The demon who was possessing you — I don’t know exactly how it worked, Cat can probably explain it better, but it ended up knocking you out for the count.”
“I’m sorry,” Magnus said.
Alec glanced up at him in surprise. “For what?”
“For hurting you.” Magnus gestured to Alec’s side, where the burns had been. “For being weak enough to get possessed. For getting knocked out and worrying you. For—”
“What? No, Magnus,” Alec said, reaching out to catch hold of Magnus’s hands. “Magnus, none of this is your fault. Your father planned it, he made sure it would work, he sent the demon. You did nothing wrong.”
“I injured you severely enough that it took Cat three days to heal you properly,” Magnus shot back. “Alexander—”
“No, you didn’t,” Alec replied immediately. “Magnus, that was all the demon. You didn’t do anything to hurt me — you’d never hurt me. I know that.”
Magnus let out a breath, his head falling down to rest on Alec’s shoulder, allowing Alec’s words to sink into him. He wasn’t quite sure if he believed Alec yet — the visceral memory of his hands tossing fireballs at Alec was hard to ignore — but he’d get there. And it was certainly good to know that Alec, at least, didn’t blame him.
“You’re not at fault,” Alec said again, more quietly. “If anything, I am — I stabbed you, Magnus, I’m so sorry—”
“Don’t you dare apologise for that,” Magnus hissed, suddenly furious, raising his head to meet Alec’s eyes full on. “Alexander, you — you can’t regret that, love, you would have died if you hadn’t—”
“I don’t regret it,” Alec said, cutting him off. “If I were in the same position, I would’ve done it again. Well, I might’ve stabbed you somewhere else, I was about two inches from your femoral artery, but — I don’t regret it.”
“Good.” Magnus exhaled, tangling their fingers together, pressing a gentle kiss to Alec’s lips. “You made the right call, darling.”
Alec hummed, lifting Magnus’s hand to kiss the back of his knuckles in an archaic gesture that somehow made Magnus fall even more in love. “You should sleep. You’re still fighting off the angelic influence in your blood.”
“Only if you come over here and take a nap with me.” Magnus patted the bed beside him, and Alec obediently climbed in. “You look exhausted.”
“Been dealing with the Clave,” Alec mumbled, adorably sleepy now that he was lying down. “’S hard. They’re annoying, kept wanting me to go to Alicante to explain the demonic energy.”
“Demonic energy?” Magnus asked, curious, as he settled down beside Alec.
“Mm. Asmodeus’, from when he sent the demon. But I didn’ wanna leave you, so I held them off.” He pulled Magnus closer with an arm around his waist, burying his face in Magnus’s chest.
Magnus smiled, private and in love, and brushed some of Alec’s hair out of his eyes before falling asleep in his husband’s arms.