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“So those are the cats Jace won't stop complaining about.”
Magnus turns from the book he'd been reading and catches sight of Alec leaning in the glass door to the balcony. He was so immersed in his reading that he didn't even hear his steps or feel him pass through the wards, and while part of him startles, alarmed at this lack of vigilance, a larger part of him tentatively indulges in this long forgotten feeling of comfortableness shared with another.
He looks down at the black cat curled up next to him on the chaise longue and to another three lazing around near the railing.
“Your parabatai can count himself lucky I haven't thrown him out yet. People who don't like cats can't be trusted,” he says, patting the black cat that rewards his efforts with a critically blinking green eye.
Alec laughs lightly and walks over to him, squatting down in front of the cat that examines him distrustfully. “Good thing I like cats then,” he remarks, glancing up at Magnus.
The cat, apparently bothered by all the attention, jumps off the lounge and joins her peers on the tiles while Alec eagerly takes the vacated seat. Magnus leans against him and sighs, content.
“You're more a cat person than a dog person then?” Alec asks.
Magnus cranes his neck to see him despite how close they're sitting. There's undeniable curiosity there, and Magnus feels the familiar warmth twisting his insides he always gets when Alec surreptitiously uses any chance he gets to learn every last detail there is to know about him. It's been so long since Magnus had someone in his life who cared to look closer, who made an effort to discover all his facets, that his heart squeezes every time he realizes that this is what Alec is doing.
He gives a hum and thinks about the question. Does he prefere cats over dogs?
They're both cuddly and cute, but... dogs remind him too much of himself. No sense of self-preservation and they tend to display unwavering faith and loyalty even in the face of harshest abuse; even when they're kicked they keep coming back anyway, begging for affection.
Cats however.... cats are honest. If they don't like someone they show it. It's a quality he would wish for more in people. Despite what first impressions might lead to believe, he doesn't have much in common with the feline species. There are his eyes of course and the general penchant for lounging around and his flair for the dramatics, but he often wishes he shared more traits with cats. They don't love easily. You have to woo them, show them that you really mean it, before they so much as think about letting you in. And even then they hiss and fight back if they are mistreated.
With Alexander he's confident that any suspicions and guardedness are dispensable, but there's always fear lingering at the edges of his consciousness, fear that he's fooling himself, that he's given his heart away too easily again, because how could it possibly be different this time around?
Magnus shakes himself out of his thoughts. After almost a century of stasis his heart wouldn't have thawed for just anyone, and certainly not for someone who only offered empty promises. He might have his difficulties trusting himself, but he trusts Alec, and Alec is too sincere to play him.
He clears his throat and replies, “Well, cats are very cute when they purr. A skill dogs lack, sadly.”
He grins lightly at Alec but is met with a thoughtful frown instead of the smile he was anticipating. His own smile dims a little, heart thumping mildly in his chest. Alec with his sharp eyes saw more than Magnus expected him to see. He's nervous about what Alec will make of it, but at the same time he feels relief creeping in. Because Alec is different, and he proves that again and again.
“Will you ever tell me what you didn't answer just now?”
Magnus bites his lip, considering, but it's all too easy to nod. Maybe he should be concerned about that, but somehow he can't find it in himself to hold back. “Yes.” His mouth quirks. “Someday.”
Alec answers with a tiny smile of his own and leans closer, knocking their shoulders together playfully, but when he speaks his words are completely serious.
“I will wait.”