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“Alexander!” Magnus’ voice carried from the other room. “Get in here. I need your help!"
Alec ran into the living room. He scanned the scene searching for the threat. Searching for the cause of Magnus’ panicked cry. All he saw was Magnus facing away from him, shifting his weight back and forth, arms gesturing wildly. Magnus was clearly distressed. Alec cautiously moved closer to see what Magnus was looking at. As he moved next to Magnus he saw the source of Magnus’ focus and frustration.
Strewn about a small oval topped table was a multitude of flowers of various kinds and colors. In the center of the table sat a blue vase. Magnus was putting flowers in the vase and taking them out again with frantic movements. "Alexander!” Magnus yelled, tilting his head up and back so his voice would carry farther behind him. Magnus abruptly stilled when he saw Alec standing next to him.
Alec’s eyes went wide, and his lips pursed. “What is happening here?"
"The arrangement is all wrong! I have tried every combination possible. None of them were right.” Magnus said with a pleading look in his eyes.
“Not every combination. There’s like a hundred flowers here. A bouquet is, what, 30 flowers?” Alec pointed out hoping a reduction in hyperbole could help diffuse Magnus’ distress.
“I know! And yes, all of them! And, no, 18 to 20.” Magnus turned his frantic attention on the flowers he gripped tightly in his hands. He held up the yellow tulip in his left hand. Then the red rose in his right. Then left. Then right. Then left. Then …
Alec calmly placed a hand on Magnus’ arm. Magnus stilled. Alec smiled and gently took the rose from Magnus and carefully placed it front and center in the arrangement. Magnus watched him intently. Alec fluffed the arrangement. He then pulled the center flower up slightly. Alec took a step back.
Magnus looked between the flowers ad Alec and back again. Alec waited patiently, but also a bit anxiously.
“It’s perfect.” Magnus said as he spun toward Alec and embraced him in a tight hug.
Alec released his breath and his shoulders relaxed. Crisis handled. “So what was this all about? What do you need perfect flowers for?”
Magnus smiled, his demeanor calmer now, and placed a hand on the small of Alec’s back. “Don’t you worry about that. Now let me finish up in here. You go back to whatever you were doing.” Magnus charismatically directed as he led Alec into the next room.
“I…um..what…why…ok…” Alec was still trying to work out what exactly was happening when the door to the study closed with him inside and Magnus still outside. Alec busied himself with a stack of backlogged reports he had brought home to work on. He was occasionally distracted by the clanging of pots and pans, or the sound of utensils hitting the floor. Each time he pushed his curiosity aside and refocused on his work.
An hour and a half later, Alec looked up when he heard the door open. Magnus stood in the doorway. “Alexander, dinner is served my love.”
Alec looked at Magnus. “I recognize that outfit.”
“That’s impressive. I’ve only worn it once,” Magnus said.
“Yes but you wore it when you crashed my wedding. I remember,” Alec said as he walked toward Magnus.
“I like to think of it as my, our-first-kiss outfit. But you know, open to interpretation I guess.” Magnus smirked at Alec as he ushered him out into the living room.
The perfect flower arrangement sat in the middle of the dining room table surrounded by an elegant candle lit diner. Loose petals matching the flowers in the arrangement spiraled in the air above the table.
Alec took in the sight, and a thought clicked. “You did this. I mean, you did all this by hand. Not magic.”
“Well the floating flower petals are magic.” Magnus pointed out.
“Magnus. This. This is amazing.”
“Alexander. You're amazing.” Magnus got out shakily. Alec’s gaze locked on Magnus, his curiosity piqued by Magnus’ uncharacteristic difficulty with words. Magnus continued, “Alexander, I know this is a lot. This is big. I don’t expect an answer right away. I have detailed everything in writing . Here.” He produced a scroll from behind his back and presented it to Alec to take.
Alec stared at him, unmoving. His instincts turning his confusion into wariness.
“Alexander, take it, please.”
Alec took the parchment. “What is this?”
“It's a contract. It's my understanding that for Shadowhunters this kind of union is contractual in nature. And while we obviously buck all Shadowhunter traditions with our pairing, I thought I could honor as much as I could. So I have articulated what I thought our union would look like, in writing.”
Alec waited for the long winded, slightly meandering, speech to conclude before whispering his question. “Union?”
“Yes.” Magnus took a deep breath, and then gently took a hold of Alec’s hand. “Alexander Lightwood, will you marry me?”
“Yup. Yes. Absolutely. That. I want that. Married. To you. I want that.” Alec’s babbling was silenced by Magnus’ lips crashing down on his.
Magnus pulled away slowly with a huge smile on his face. “I am open to negotiating the contract once you’ve had a chance to read it.”
Alec was delighted by Magnus’ gesture of respect for his culture. Alec threw the parchment over his shoulder. “I’m sure it’s quite the textual accomplishment, but I say we wing it. That’s your tradition, isn’t it?” Alec interrupted Magnus’ adoring look by pulling Magnus to him and kissing his fiancé deeply.