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“Come on Alec! We’re going to miss it!” Max said impatiently, tugging at Alec’s hand to move faster.
“Alright, alright,” Alec laughs as he picks up the pace. “The ice cream shop isn’t going to go anywhere. Why the rush?”
“Because they have new flavors!” Max rolls his eyes as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world. “You know how fast their new flavors go and I will not miss them because you are a slowpoke!”
“Just because you turned seven last week doesn’t give you the right to be bossy,” Alec comments as he picks up Max. The child screams out in delight causing a few heads to turn their way as he hoists Max up onto his shoulders.
“I’m the tallest kid in Edom!” Max declares and he pumps two fists in the air.
“Hold on tight, Max,” Alec laughs looking up at him with a smile. Max’s bushy, curly hair bounces with every step he takes.
Max’s laughs echo along the sidewalk as Alec power walks to the ice cream shop. Above him, Max makes whooshing sounds with his black wings spread out behind him, pretending like he’s flying. Alec can’t wait to see Max’s first flight. His wings are not strong enough to carry him yet, but once he turns eight, Alec knows that Max is going to drag everyone out to see him fly. He has stated so, multiple times, to anyone who will listen.
They make it to the shop in record time. Alec almost drops Max as the boy tries to climb down his six-foot-tall body by himself. The second his feet touch the ground, Max makes a dash for the door and is inside before Alec can even blink. Alec chuckles at the boy’s excitement and heads in after him. He doesn’t understand why they need to rush, there’s barely a line to the counter.
“Alec!” Max waves a hand and flaps his wings to get Alec’s attention as if Alec couldn’t already easily spot him in a crowd.
Since living in Edom, he and Max are the only two that he knows of that have black wings. There was a merchant who came to town a few months ago that had black wings, but the woman was only in for the week before she moved onto the next town to sell her goods.
She had told Alec that he was the second person she had met with black wings, but warned him to be careful should he leave such a welcoming city. The words didn’t come as a surprise to Alec because of his upbringing. He’s well aware that there are places where he would not be welcome.
They approach the counter and Alec sees a plethora of flavors that he can’t decide which one to pick. Max, on the other hand, knows exactly which ones he wants to get. He points out to the confectioner which ones he wants and asks the man about their new flavors. Alec stands back and allows Max to get what he wants. He’ll have to send an apology message to his parents for the sugar rush Max is going to have for the next few hours. Maybe he can take the soon to be hyper kid to the park for a while before taking him back home.
“Alec!” Max calls, he already has his bowl of four flavors. “You still have to pick!”
“Right.” Alec turns to the confectioner. “I’ll just have the chocolate and vanilla twist.”
“Boring,” Max drawls, stomping his feet on the ground in protest at Alec’s choice. “Come on, Alec! Pick something fun!”
“Chocolate and vanilla are fun,” Alec defends with a huff, his feathers mock ruffling behind him.
“But there are so many flavors to try!” Max insists as Alec takes his cone from the worker.
“Guess we’ll have to come back another time then.”
Max perks up at that and begins to bounce on his heels. His black wings almost knock over a stanchion in his excitement. Alec finishes paying for their ice cream and they make their way outside. The weather is nice enough that it won’t melt their frozen treats too quickly. They sit down at an open bench right outside the shop.
Max’s legs are swinging back and forth underneath the table as he greedily eats his ice cream. Alec has to tell him a few times to slow down or he’s going to get a brain freeze. Which of course Max ignores and proceeds to get brain freeze. Alec feels bad for laughing at a seven year old’s pain, but he did warn him. He at least tries to hide the laugh by covering it with his hand and looking away from Max.
He makes eye contact with the two men sitting at the bench across from them. He remembers passing them on their way to the shop. Something is off about the way they’re looking at him and Max, but he doesn’t have time to decipher what it is when Max is shoving a spoon in his face to try one of the new flavors.
Once they are finished with their ice cream, he leads Max to a trash bin to toss out his spoon and bowl.
“What do you say we spend some time at the park before heading home?” Alec asks. “We got a few more hours before your parents are done with work.”
Max nods his head rapidly, jumping giddily in place. “I want to go on the monkey bars!”
“One set of monkey bars coming up,” Alec grunts as he once again lifts Max to his shoulders.
He thanks his job every day for allowing him to lift Max with such ease. The heavy sacks of goods that he’s had to carry these past two years is enough to give any man back problems. Having a boyfriend who not only grooms wings but gives the best back massages has its perks. Especially when the back massages are boyfriend exclusive only.
Max is singing some tune above him as they make their way to the park. They are a few blocks down the street when he feels eyes on them again. He uses the excuse that his back is starting to hurt to lower a dissatisfied Max to the ground and looks behind him.
He sees the two men from before and something in Alec’s stomach drops. He puts on a fake smile for Max so he doesn’t freak out and continues their walk to the park, every once in awhile looking behind them. They have four more blocks to go. He subtly glances around at anything that can be used to get away but with it being the weekday, most of the shops are closed. Alec curses under his breath and slowly picks up his pace.
Max doesn’t seem to notice the change of speed as he asks Alec how many bars he thinks he can skip this time going across. Alec tries to pay attention to Max’s words to make it seem like he hasn’t noticed the two men. They have two more blocks to go before they make it to the park and Alec sighs in relief that they’re almost there, but as he turns the corner there’s a man on the sidewalk front of him, wearing similar clothes to the two men behind them. Alec halts his steps, pulling Max into his side.
“Alec?” Max says uneasy, looking from Alec to the man.
“Hello Mr. Lightwood,” the man says. “We’ve been looking for you.”
“Well, you found me,” Alec grits, his wings bristle behind him in a threatening manner. His instinct to protect Max outweighs his own safety. “You can leave now.”
“I’m afraid I can’t do that,” the man chuckles, pulling out a knife from his holster. “You see, there is a nice price on your head and I intend to cash that in.” Max whimpers and Alec pulls him underneath his wing. The man laughs at the movement as he fiddles with the sharp object. “Apparently mommy and daddy aren’t too happy to find out their mistake is still alive.”
Dread washes over him like a bucket full of ice cold water at the words. The mention of his parents makes his skin crawl and alarms go off in his head. He should have known that Robert and Maryse would assume he was dead when they didn’t pay the ransom. That his captor would have killed him when he found him no longer useful. Guess they didn’t factor in Magnus being his captor.
“Well they’re going to have to stay unhappy,” Alec spits at the man. “Because I’m not going with you.”
“Oh, you don’t have to come with us. We just need evidence that the problem is taken care of,” the man cackles. “And your wings look like a pretty nice trophy. ”
“Max,” Alec says as calm as he can. He glances down and sees that the boy’s hands are shaking where they clutch at his shirt, his wings curled around himself and Alec’s thigh. “Max.” The boy looks up. “When I say run, I want you to head for the nearest open shop and call for help.” Max shakes his head and plasters himself to Alec’s side. “You have to, buddy.”
“But Alec-”
“Hey.” He gives Max his most reassuring smile, before looking back at the man. “It’s going to be okay, but I need you to go get help.”
He waits until he feels Max nod against his side. He looks behind him and sees that the two men have gotten closer. Just a few steps more and they’ll be within striking distance. It’s been a while since he’s been in a full out fight. He mainly settles small disputes between vendors, rarely do fists fly.
As soon as the two men are within range, Alec spreads his wings out and twists, hitting the men hard. One man flies into a wall and gets knocked out. The other falls on the sidewalk with a loud grunt.
“Max, run!” Alec shoves Max in the opposite direction and the boy takes off. Max looks behind him as he runs, fear prevalent in his eyes. Alec is going to make these bastards pay for that look.
Alec doesn’t watch to see if Max gets to safety when he hears the footsteps running towards him. He twists out of the way but not in fast enough as he feels the knife plunge into his left wing. He cries out at the pain but doesn’t let it stop him. The bastard has a sick grin on his face as he pulls the knife out. Alec quickly tests the wing, stretching it out to its full span. The knife didn’t hit anything critical so he’s still able to use it. It’s only then, does he start to feel a numbness spread throughout it.
He looks down at the knife coated in his blood and sees a strange substance on it. The numbness reaches the base of his wing and he sees more than feels his wing drop. Alec tries to move it but it stays fallen.
“Amazing, ain’t it?” The man boasts. “Made it myself to help with taking those nasty wings off people’s backs. Of course, I keep the person alive. After all, I am saving them from a life of pain.”
“You’re cutting off their wings!” Alec growls, his hand goes up to his numb wing to make sure that it’s still there. “How is that saving them?”
“Having black wings is a curse,” the man casually explains. “A bad omen. It’s surprising that this town hasn’t crumbled from your presence.”
“Black wings are a blessing,” Alec states. It had taken him a long time to accept that, but thanks to Magnus and the friends he’s made in this city he can proudly wear his wings out for everyone to see. He’s going to do anything to make sure Max never has to hear the vitriol this man is spewing.
“Seems you need to relearn some things,” the man barks.
Alec gets tackled from behind and falls to the ground. He tries to use his right wing to get the crook off his back, but the man takes the wing in his hands and presses his knee against it. Alec realizes what the man is going to do and doubles his efforts to shake the man off. He begs for his left wing to move but it lays motionless at his side.
He lets out a gut wrenching scream as he feels the bone snap.
“Should have let us do our job,” the leader tuts as he crouches down in front of Alec. The man behind him presses a knee to his back so he can’t move. Not like he could anyway. The pain from his right wing is overwhelming his body. “Maybe this wouldn’t hurt as much.” The man pulls Alec by his hair to make sure he’s looking at him. “Don’t worry though, we’ll make sure that little disease that was with you gets the luxury treatment.”
Alec spits at the man which gets him punched in the face. One particular hit to the temple makes his world tilt more than it already was. The man lets out a wicked laugh as his head hits the ground.
He should move, he has to move. He has to make sure these bastards don’t lay a single finger on Max. He won’t let them, he can’t. Alec tries to push himself up but the man on top of him slams his knee down on his back right between the base of his wings, jostling his broken one. He lets out a whimper.
“Not so tough now are we?” The goon above him cackles. “Why don’t we start with the right one, boss?”
Alec cries out as pain shoots up his wing when the men grab it. He doubles his effort to break free and get the man off his back. The two men laugh at his poor attempt and Alec receives a kick to the face.
“Now be a good boy and let us do our job,” one of them says. He can’t focus on anything anymore, the pain is too much and his head has been hit too many times. Alec closes his eyes and accepts his fate.
He feels the knife begin to slice through his wing when suddenly the weight on his back disappears and the knife is gone from his wing. He hears shouting and the sound of fists being thrown. He should help whoever is there but any movement hurts.
“Don’t move,” a voice soothes. They brush the hair out of his face and Alec sees long red hair fill his vision before he sees a young woman come into view. Alec wants to ask about Max, if he’s okay, if he got away. Whatever expression is on his face makes the woman curse. “I need some help!”
“Oh my god... is he gonna be okay?”
“You have the right to remain silent.”
“He’s a freak! You should be helping me get rid of monsters like him.”
“Get them out of here.”
“Alec! Alec!”
Alec lets out a sob as he hears Max’s voice although it’s tinged with fear and worry. He’s glad that one good thing came out of this and it was Max’s safety. He would have never forgiven himself if Max had gotten hurt or worse , gotten his wings cut off.
He wants to stay awake to see Max with his own eyes to be sure he is unharmed, but the pain is becoming too much. The woman must see it and pats his hair again.
“It’s alright,” she reassures. “You’re safe now.”
Alec wakes up to the sound of sniffling. It takes him a moment to register his surroundings but he finds himself on his stomach on a bed. Judging by the familiar smells, it’s his and Magnus’ bed. There’s a hand in his, clutching so tightly that Alec is worried that his hand might break. He gives the hand a light squeeze.
The body attached to it freezes as gasps and sobs leave their mouth. The hand in his squeezes back even tighter than before. A chair crashes to the ground and a thump echoes through their room. There’s a dip in the bed next to him as Magnus moves closer to his body.
“Alexander?” Magnus says, voice hoarse. There’s a gentle hand brushing hair out of his face. “Darling, open your eyes for me? Please.”
How could Alec ever say no to his boyfriend? Opening his eyes takes effort, his right eye is a bit swollen. His pupils adjust to the low light and directly in his line of sight is Magnus, bathed in a golden halo of the fireplace behind him. He looks beautiful, he thinks. A wide but wobbly smile is on his boyfriend’s face. His eyes are red and puffy and his makeup has left streaks down his cheeks.
“Hi,” Alec whispers. Magnus doesn’t even try to hold back a sob and he lifts their joined hands to his lips.
“Hello, darling,” Magnus says. “You gave me quite the scare.”
“I’m sorry to have worried you,” he mumbles into the pillow. The hand on the back of his head feels wonderful as it pets through his hair. He almost falls asleep again when he remembers the day’s events.
“Max,” Alec gasps. His body tenses at the memories, causing him to whimper as his right wing is jostled by the sudden movement.
“Hey hey, relax.” Magnus rushes onto the bed to stop his wings from moving too much. Magnus gently moves his hands across the top of his wings. “Max is okay. Terrified, but okay. He’s with his family right now. Let’s focus on you getting better, okay?”
He relaxes back into the pillows knowing that Max is okay. Magnus’ hands on his wings feel delicate like he’s afraid to break them more than they already are. It’s his turn to let out a shaky breath as he feels Magnus’ hand touch his left wing and Alec can feel it, relieved to have known that the paralyzing toxin was only temporary. Now that Alec has calmed down, he realizes that Magnus’ hands are shaking.
“Come here,” Alec says, bringing his arm around to tug at Magnus’ hands.
“Alexander, we shouldn’t,” Magnus advises.
“You won’t hurt me, come under my left wing. That one’s not broken,” he chuckles darkly. He probably shouldn’t be joking about it so soon, but it’s better than talking about it.
“That’s not funny,” Magnus scolds as he slides underneath the wing. “You could have- you almost-.”
“Hey,” Alec whispers as he pulls Magnus to his side. “I’m here.”
“But you almost weren’t,” Magnus sniffs, snuggling into Alec’s side. “God, when Max’s mother rushed into the shop with fear on her face, I thought the worst. Then I got to the house and saw the doctor tending to your wing and the broken angle it was at. The officer explained what happened and it was like all of my nightmares had come true.” Magnus’ wings are tucked tightly behind him as he and Alec try to get comfortable with as little movement as possible.
“After everything you told me about your childhood and of that hell town, to hear that hunters came after you,” Magnus’ breath shakes, “I couldn’t breathe properly until I saw you with my own two eyes. Then to see your wings…” Magnus reaches out to brush feathers on his left wing. “The wave of relief I felt to see them still on your back. I was so terrified that you had lost them to those monsters.”
“What happened?” Alec reaches for the hand on his wing and twines it with his own. He stares at their joined hands as he rubs the back of Magnus’. “Last thing I remember was someone with red hair leaning over me.”
“Those bastards got arrested,” Magnus growls. “Max was able to find a family walking down the street and luckily the father was an officer and the mother was a nurse. They were able to arrest the hunters and tend to your wings. Their daughter, Clary, was the one who stayed by your side until I could get here.”
Alec kisses the back of Magnus’ hands in silent apology. He can still see tension throughout his boyfriend’s body and shuffles the short distance to kiss him. His heart breaks as Magnus lets out a sob during the kiss.
He knew that this might happen one day, his parents threatened him with the idea of hunters enough times that he knew to hide his wings was the best option for him if he wanted to still have them. If he still wanted to live. It’s one of the many reasons he wore a harness all the time.
Alec will never go back to that life. He’s glad that it’s behind him and that he has the life he has now.
“I love you so much, Alexander,” Magnus whispers into his lips.
“I love you too, Magnus,” Alec whispers back.
Magnus tucks himself under Alec’s chin and settles in for the night. Alec feels a hand rest over his heart and the other wraps around his back.
They’re taken out of their peaceful rest by an incessant knock on their door. Alec groans into Magnus’ hair, burrowing into it.
“It’s late,” he whines. “Who knocks at this time?”
“It might be the officers from earlier,” Magus says as he scoots from under Alec’s wing carefully. He leans down to press a kiss to Alec’s head. “I’ll only be a moment.”
“You better, or I will get up and kick them out myself,” Alec grumbles, already missing Magnus’ presence from the bed.
“You will not move from this bed or I will tie you to it,” Magnus warns, before leaving the room. Magnus hears a faint laugh from the bed before making his way to the front door.
He checks himself in the hallway mirror to fix up his face and get rid of any more noticeable makeup smudges. It’s not the best but he doesn’t look like he just dunked his face in water. Magnus hopes that this will be quick, he doesn’t want to spend one more second away from Alec’s side even if it’s to give another statement for the case. The knocking starts again, louder this time.
“Impatient much?” He complains as he unlocks the door. “Hello, officer, how can I-” His words stop in his throat as he takes in the couple in front of him. He leans against the doorframe, annoyance already leaking out. “You realize it’s nine o’clock at night. Normally the people who want to sell us things show up in the morning.”
The blonde-haired man shoots a glare at him, his golden wings bristling behind him. The dark-haired woman with him puts a hand on his arm, her light blue wings reaching out to relax the man.
“I’m sorry,” the woman says. “I know it’s late but we were wondering if Alec Lightwood lives here?”
Immediately his hackles rise, wings puffing out, ready to defend his home. He keeps his face neutral as he takes in the two who notice the change. The woman is smart enough to take a step back, but she has to pull the blonde man with her.
“What does it matter to you?” He asks, biting back the anger.
The duo share a hesitant glance before gathering strength to answer his question.
“I’m Isabelle Lightwood, this is my brother, Jace Lightwood,” Isabelle says. “We’re Alec’s younger siblings and we want to see him.”