Chapter Text
Alec took a second to realize that he recognized the name that was the next on his list and then took another to take a deep breath. Camille Belcourt had appealed her imprisonment. He fought down the urge to chuckle. She likely never would have attempted an appeal if she had known that he was going to be reviewing them. But then again, knowing her, maybe she would. Alec skimmed through her file briefly and knew that she had no case and that he’d be denying the appeal, but he had promised to speak with everyone to hear their piece, if nothing else.
He gestured to the guards at the door and gave them a nod. “Let her in,” he ordered.
Camille glided into the room, her heels clicking on the metal floor as she daintily sat in the seat across from him.
Alec raised an eyebrow and studied her. She didn’t look any different from the last time he had seen her, when she had attempted to make him jealous by kissing Magnus. A quick glance down at his wedding ring made him smile and he met her eyes when she looked up.
“Inquisitor Lightwood,” she said, her tone frosty.
Alec couldn’t help the curl of pleasure in his gut when he got the opportunity to correct her. “Lightwood-Bane, actually. But that’s all right, I doubt the news reached you down here.“
"Excuse me,” Camille said, staring at him. “Lightwood….Bane?"
Alec nodded and glanced down meaningfully at the ring he was wearing. Camille’s eyes on him were no longer frost, but furious daggers and he couldn’t help smiling faintly.
"He married you?” Camille asked, incredulous. “You, a mortal?"
Alec didn’t bother offering up the information that he wasn’t nearly as mortal as she thought these days, but that was better left for another day, and perhaps another century. "My marriage is not the subject of why we are here today. You have requested that your sentence be appealed, or thrown out all-together, and I am unsure on what grounds you think the Clave-”
“Your husband,” Camille growled, her eyes sparking in anger. “Decided to wrongfully imprison me."
Alec raised both of his eyebrows. "Wrongfully? An interesting choice of words considering that your list of crimes against mundanes and the Clave numbers in the hundreds. That’s also not including the crimes that your fledglings committed under your command, which, if pressed, I am sure could also be attributed to you if you wanted to push me,” he said, keeping his tone light as he looked down at her file again.
“And does your husband not have a similar list?” Camille shot back. “I seem to recall-”
“Magnus Lightwood-Bane’s record has been wiped clean after his service to Alicante during the demon attack of-”
Camille scoffed. “He even took your name?”
Alec fought the urge to smile, even though he knew it would make her all the more angry. “Again, not the subject between us here, and I would ask, Ms. Belcourt, that you do keep things on topic between us or I will deny your appeal without further discussion.”
“Magnus Lightwood-Bane,” Camille managed to grit out. “Is guilty of just as many crimes against the Clave as I am, if not more. In what world is he allowed to walk free and I am trapped here?"
"Well,” Alec said, leaning forward to smile at her. “Not including the fact that his record was wiped clean as a result of his sacrifice and saving of Alicante and all of Idris, there is the fact that majority of his crimes, by which I mean more than 90%, were done in the protection of other downworlders, or their rescue. In fact, candidates like Magnus are the reason we opened his appeals process in the first place. Now, in your case,” Alec added, looking down at the folder. "The percentages do not weigh so heavily in your favor.“
"You-”
Alec’s tone brooked no argument as he continued. “So I suggest, Ms. Belcourt, you tell me why I should consider setting you free when there is no evidence, nor indication in your behavior here, that you are willing to change."
Camille stared at him, stony faced. "My clan-”
“Your clan,” Alec said, rifling through the stack of papers, pulling out one in particular, pushing it towards her. “Decided to submit you to my jurisdiction after I explained the program. Under which, by the way, we have released more than a dozen prisoners to various downworlder communities. They’ve been allowed to rejoin their lives and have the full apology and support of the Clave in doing so."
"So that’s it, hm?” Camille asked, examining her nails after glancing at the paper he had presented. “Magnus decides to marry his little human pet that is going to abandon him in a few years. It’ll be a matter of time before he comes crawling back to me, you know that, right?"
Alec frowned and snapped Camille’s file shut, crossing his arms over his chest as he studied her. "Did you ever care for him at all?"
Camille laughed. "Care? Of course I cared for him. I taught him to embrace the side of himself that he would rather hide from. I taught him that the demon, not the man, held the power and he should live that, encompass it."
Alec snorted and shook his head. "There are many things you did to him that I have spent years working to undo. Perhaps the worst is the twisted idea that you cared for him at all. But I wonder if you ever knew him."
"What do you mean?” she narrowed her eyes.
“Nothing,” Alec said, shaking his head. “I know you saved him once. Where he was on the edge, and you pulled him back, gave him a reason to live. For that, I know his thoughts around you will always be conflicted. I have no concerns with that."
She rolled her eyes. “But you do have concerns.”
“Not like you might think,” Alec said, a faint smile curling his lips. “However, if you have nothing further say in regards to your appeal-”
“What happens when you die, hm? How long do you have Inquisitor? Forty years, if you’re lucky? Maybe fifty?”
Alec gave a faint smile. “I’ll have to come see you in fifty years and we can discuss it then, how about that?” He turned back to the guards and gestured. “She can return to her cell, her sentence remains precisely what it was.”
“You’ll see,” Camille shouted. “A century, maybe two, and he’ll be back with me, where he belongs.”
Alec didn’t bother listening to her, packing up his things. “I think that’s enough for today,” he called to the guards, stretching as he pushed himself out of his chair. “I want to go home.”
~!~
Magnus knew something was wrong the second he got home and Alec was grateful to sag into the tight hug he was graced with. He took a deep breath and smiled. “I missed you.”
“I missed you too,” Magnus said immediately, reaching up to cup Alec’s cheek, pulling him in for a kiss. “Is everything all right?”
Alec hummed, and nodded. “Camille filed for an appeal of her case. Spent more of her time insulting us than she did appealing her case.”
Magnus sighed and wrapped his arms around Alec in another tight hug. “I’m sorry.”
Alec hugged Magnus close. “Don’t be. She’s a part of your past, and is one of the reasons you are here today. I can’t hate her for that.” He paused and chuckled, pressing a kiss to Magnus’ neck. “There are plenty of other reasons for me to hate her.”
Magnus snorted and rolled his eyes, tugging Alec’s briefcase away from him, and then bringing his husband towards their couch. “I think you need a drink.”
Alec grinned and sat down on the couch, watching as Magnus mixed them cocktails. “You know what was fun, though?”
Magnus raised his eyebrows. “Hm?”
“Seeing how shocked she was when I corrected her on my name,” Alec admitted, laughter escaping him. “She looked so horrified, Magnus, it took everything in me not to burst out laughing.”
Magnus shook his head and couldn’t help chuckling. “I almost wish you had.”
Alec grinned, glad when Magnus slid into his lap with both of their drinks, wrapping his arm around Magnus’ waist, holding him close as he took the drink, raising it to Magnus. “To us?” he offered.
Magnus clinked their glasses together, smiling. “To us.”