Chapter Text
The New York Zoo Institute
“It’s just so frustrating!” Catarina exclaimed as she spooned another heap of sugar into her coffee. She had always been someone who needed sweet things when stressed. “There is tons of research pointing to the benefits a pet can have on the emotional and mental well being of their owner. Yet the hospital keeps holding rigorously to its regulations.”
Magnus nodded attentively, and quickly conjured a cinnamon bun with extra thick glaze, to scoot over to her. She bit into it with relish.
“As much as I hate playing devil’s advocate, my dear, but aren’t hospitals kinda big on the whole hygiene thing? And I don’t believe that pets adapt to that concept all too well.” He countered carefully, keeping his voice light.
With Catarina, sometimes she just needed to vent a little about things that couldn’t be changed, and other times she wanted to have a real discussion with possible problem solving as the goal. Depending on how she reacted to his initial point, Magnus would be able to determine which one it was.
“And I understand that.” She sighed. “It’s not like I’m advocating for every patient to bring their pet hamster with them for their appendix removal. But this kid has been traumatized throughout most of his life. He is just now getting better, and a lot of that is due to his companion animal. Being in the hospital is putting a lot of stress on him now, and if they just allowed to bring in the dog for a few hours, it would help a lot with his fear and anxiety, making the whole process that much smoother.”
So a real discussion it was, then. Magnus nodded, leaning back in his chair and taking a sip from his martini. Virgin. Ever since he had given up his immortality, alcohol had a little more effect on him than it used to. As he was still a warlock, his magic shielded him some, but not as fully as it once had. And Magnus had promised Alexander to take better care of his health. What use would be all the trouble he had gone through to actually grow old together with Alexander, if he killed his liver long before their golden years, after all?
He didn’t necessarily miss the alcohol, but the taste was something he would have to get used to.
“Don’t they have to make allowances for service animals?”
“Yes, but therapeutic animals, or emotional companion animals, aren’t always classified as service animals. There is a whole lot of mundane bureaucratic bullshit that goes into this. And unfortunately for my patient, his dog isn’t recognized as a service animal. Which means he has to suffer through panic and anxiety attacks, that we often have to restrain or sedate him through, so he doesn’t hurt himself or others. And I don’t have to tell you that that is not conducive to a speedy recovery for him.”
Magnus nodded, swirling his drink in contemplation. “What about glamouring the dog?”
“Unless I want to explain the existence of magic to the kid and his parents, that wouldn’t work. And a glamour doesn’t disguise sound. There is no way to guarantee that the dog would stay silent during the whole stay.”
“Not to mention how strange it might look to anyone else who sees the boy cuddling with air. Wouldn’t want to land him in the psych ward. Maybe a ‘Look Not’ spell? Like the ones protecting the shadowhunter institutes and vampire lairs. It can’t be attached to living beings, and doing it to the whole building would be too complicated with far too much room for error. But we could localize it to your patient's room in the hospital, with the dog as the focus point.”
But again, Catarina shook her head. “Then we would still have to smuggle the dog in. And even if the parents agreed to that and were sneaky enough to pull that off, how would I explain to them that there is no need to hide the dog once it is in the room?”
Catarina had obviously thought about this before. Not that Magnus was surprised. This woman was nothing if not efficient.
“Hmm. A difficult task indeed.” He took another sip of his drink, grimacing a bit. It was certainly an acquired taste. And Magnus hadn’t quite acquired it yet. Maybe he should just switch to a different mocktail. Some of those had their charms… Charms!
“A charm!” He exclaimed, startling Catarina slightly. “We can’t spell a living being directly, but we can attach the spell to a tag that can be added to the dog’s collar. We would of course have to exclude the parents and the boy from the charm’s effects, but that is easy enough. You can tell the parents that it’s a special tag that allows the dog access to the hospital to visit the kid. If you compare it to those harnesses that service dogs wear, they should understand. Say it’s a special agreement with your hospital’s board of directors, and that it’s best not to bring any attention to it with the other staff or patients. That they will ‘act like the dog isn’t there at all’, as part of the agreement. Make them give the tag back to you personally upon the boy’s release, and none should be the wiser.”
Catarina looked thoughtful for a moment, then a slow smile spread over her lips. “That could work. I could tell them it’s a test program the hospital is running, and at the same time impress upon them that for the test to be successful, it’s important that the dog is as quiet as possible during the visits, and to not draw any attention to it, in order to not disrupt the hospital's routine.”
“I imagine that the parents will be grateful enough to be able to help their child during his ordeal, that they won’t even think to ask too many questions about it. And if the presence of his dog helps him with his recovery as you predict it will, you shouldn’t have to keep the ruse going for too long.”
Now she was grinning brightly. “Magnus, this is brilliant! I knew I could count on you.” She gave him a big, exuberant kiss on the cheek, and the both of them hurried to his apothecary to create the charm.
He knew the second he laid eyes on Alexander that something was wrong. His husband was hunched over his desk, head down and fingers fisting through his hair. Magnus closed the door to the office behind him softly. There was no need to have any of the shadowhunters milling around, see their institute’s head like this.
He crossed the distance in a few quick strides and laid his hand comfortingly upon a tense shoulder. It startled Alec into an upright position, and the fact that he apparently hadn’t even noticed Magnus entering, more than anything else, pointed to something bad.
“Magnus? When did you-?”
“I came in just now, Darling. I was going to seduce you away from your work for a lunch date, but never mind that now. What happened?”
And where before Alec might have tried to claim that nothing was wrong, they had both learned the importance of open communication and sharing their burdens with each other since they had first started dating. So he leaned back a bit in his chair, and gently took Magnus’ hand to guide him down to sit in his lap. Wrapping his arms around his husband’s waist, Alec took a deep breath.
“We got an alert for demon activity in the city this morning. None of the active patrols were close, so I took Jace, Izzy and Clary with me to deal with it. A small group of lesser demons had infiltrated a family home. By the time we got there, they had killed most of the mundanes gruesomely. We were only able to save the youngest daughter. She had hidden in a closet, but she must have heard all of it. She just… cried and screamed when Izzy found her. We brought Luke in on it, and he is going to make sure the girl will be cared for and get all the help she needs. But… Angel, it was bad. And for a moment there, she reminded me so much of Madzie, for some reason. And now I can’t get this image of her crying and scared and alone out of my mind.”
As the first tear escaped Alec’s eyes, Magnus embraced him, guiding his husband’s head softly into his chest.
“I’m so sorry, Alexander.”
There were many things he could say right then. How it hadn’t been Alexander’s fault. How he had done everything he could. How at least they had been able to save the little girl. That something like this would never happen to Madzie.
But his husband knew all of that, had in fact lived through things like this before. Had had to go through too much tragedy and heartbreak already in his still young life. And simple words, no matter how true, would not be enough to heal these kinds of wounds.
So Magnus did the only thing that would help, even if only a little. He held his husband as Alexander broke down and sobbed into his chest, stroked through his hair and told him how much he loved him.
Later, after what might have been hours or mere minutes, Alec still wasn’t ready to let Magnus get off his lap, not that Magnus was trying to. They just held on to each other, and Alec’s voice was a whisper.
“I love this job. What we do is important and honorable and I can’t think of myself doing anything else. But some days… some days are just so damn hard.”
In response, Magnus held him tighter.
“His nightmares have lessened significantly and his whole demeanor has lightened dramatically. His vitals have been steadily improving, and his latest test results all point to a release from the hospital far earlier than anyone anticipated at first.” Catarina beamed as she speared her fork into her steak with gusto.
Magnus had been babysitting Madzie today during Catarina’s double shift, and conjured his friend a hearty meal when she came to pick her daughter up after work. As Alexander had wanted to evaluate their newest recruits during their first patrol, he wouldn’t make it back home until the very early morning, and Magnus was grateful for the distraction looking after his goddaugther offered. Madzie and him had already eaten earlier, and the little girl was sleeping in the (her) guest bedroom by the time her mother arrived.
“That sounds wonderful.” Magnus smiled, topping off both of their glasses with the mix of coconut milk and strawberry juice. Madzie and him had used their time together very productively by playing bartender and trying out all kinds of alcohol free drink recipes. This one was a clear favorite for Magnus.
“And all that thanks to the unconditional love of an animal companion. Life truly never ceases to amaze.”
Catarina nodded, and then gave him a piercing look. “Indeed. But I feel like there is something else on your mind.”
Magnus looked at her as if she had caught him with his hand in the cookie jar, then laughed self-consciously. “My apologies, my dear. I truly am very happy to hear that your patient is on his way to a full recovery. Thanks to your efforts of getting him access to his dog specifically, might I add.”
They smiled at each other and toasted their glasses.
Then Magnus sighed. “I have actually been thinking a lot about this for the last few days. Animal-assisted therapy and all that. In fact, my browser history pretty much consists of little else right now. The documented benefits for not only mental, but also physical health are astonishing. How even the simple act of petting an animal releases an automatic relaxation response. How the bonds between a person and their pet can help them overcome traumatic events…”
Her look softened further in understanding, and she laid her hand on his wrist and squeezed gently. “I think it’s a wonderful idea, Magnus, and you have more than enough space here for a pet. I know you are partial to cats, and I could get you in contact with someone who specializes-”
“Oh, no. Not for me.” Magnus cut her off quickly. “I was thinking about Alexander and his siblings. Also Clarissa and Simon. They all have been through so much in the last few years. Raphael, too, even if he would sooner step into the sun than admit to it. And you know, Madzie told me about her friend’s chinchilla today and how much she would like to have one. Then we did a little research about chinchillas and found out that they aren’t the most recommended pets for children her age, but Madzie can be very patient and responsible, so I don’t think we should lump her in with the rest of her age group where this is concerned.”
Catarina gave him a look that was part exasperated and part fond. “Magnus, I-... Okay. There are obviously a few different discussions we need to tackle. Let’s start with the easiest. I know about the chinchilla. And unless Madzie does something that makes me question her ability to properly care for it, I planned on getting her one for her next birthday.”
This had Magnus perking up. “She will love it. Would you mind if Alexander and I got the cage for her? Thanks to the rigorous research Madzie and I did, you can now consider me an expert." He easily ignored the snort Catarina made at that. "I know that they need lots of space and opportunities to climb and burrow holes. How do you feel about adding another room to your apartment?”
She held up her hands in hopes of stalling her friend. Magnus loved giving gifts. The more extravagant, the better. So she needed to put a stop to this before he got her and Madzie a new house with an outdoor chinchilla habitat.
“You can get her the cage under one condition. Alec will be the one choosing it.” Because her friend’s husband was far more level headed when it came to these things.
Magnus almost pouted, but then nodded. “Fine. But if Madzie wants to make her chinchilla an instagram account, I get to put it in little sparkly outfits.”
She pointed her finger at him. “That, we will talk about at a later date. Now to the second issue. Are you telling me you want to fill the New York shadowhunter institute with therapy animals?”
“Of course not. For one, we won’t be calling them ‘therapy animals’, as that is just a prelude to having at least Alexander and Jace loudly proclaim how they don’t need therapy. As would Raphael, though he obviously doesn’t reside in the institute. For another, four animals would hardly be enough to fill the whole institute. … You know what, make that five. Maximilian is finally old enough to choose where he wants to finish his training, and he naturally chose New York to be closer to his siblings and mother. So we are really only talking about seven animals in total. … Though Alexander told me that he approached Lydia about transferring to his institute to help him with running it, and she accepted. And you know she has had a rough go at it as well. And then I wouldn’t want to forget about Maia-”
“Stop.” This was exactly what she meant about Magnus and gift giving. Once he got rolling, he was like an avalanche. (Though to be fair, he usually left less destruction in his wake)
“Let’s start with your original six. Alec, Izzy, Jace, Clary, Simon and Raphael.”
“No, no. Make it seven. I really can’t leave out Maximilian, and I don’t want Lydia to feel unwelcome in her new home. … But then only Maia would be without a furry companion and that just seems so rude-”
“Maia is a werewolf. An animal might not react well to her.” She threw in, hoping to derail Magnus a little. But it seemed her friend wouldn’t let her.
“Well, yes. If we were talking about normal animals.”
“Wait, we aren’t talking about normal animals?” How did Magnus always manage to suddenly turn something into a completely unexpected direction? He had truly chosen his name well. The Magnus-Effect, indeed.
“Well, of course not.” He leaned back in his chair, swirling the drink in his glass a little for effect. “They all need a companion that can stand beside them through everything they face. In the case of our dear shadowhunters, that will likely mean many dangerous situations. For Raphael and Simon, it will mean a very long life. A normal animal won’t do for them.”
Obviously, Catarina was in need of more information, if she wanted to either help Magnus with whatever he had planned, or talk him out of it. So she took a long drink from her glass and looked at him. “Okay. Tell me what you have in mind.”
He smiled at her gratefully. “Remember that snake I made for Camille?”