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Magnus was happy. He sat among his friends in the Public Garden, talking and laughing. Alex was holding his hand, deep in a debate with Blitz over knee high boots. Sam, Mallory, Halfborn, and T.J. were talking about something Magnus couldn’t hear, and Hearth was contently weaving grass blades together and lining up white rocks along Blitz’s shoe.
Blitz turned his attention to Hearth, and Alex turned his attention to Magnus in turn. He smiled up at him, amber eye looking even more striking, yet warm in the afternoon sun. It was summer, making the freckles across his nose and cheeks more prominent, standing out even against his brown skin. Magnus had always kind of had a think for freckles.
But then something changed. Alex's face shifted, showing ridged scarring burned from venom. His eyes changed from warm brown to electric green, hardening into a cruel expression. Magnus was no longer looking at the person he loved. In Alex’s place sat Loki.
Around him, all his friends had frozen in place, slowly turning to look at him. Their eyes glinted electric blue, slitted and ready to attack. Magnus tried to get up and run, but Loki was still holding tightly to his hand. Shadow’s seemed to close all around him, blocking out the August sun. One by one his friends' eyes changed back to normal, and one by one they were vaporized with a scream.
Loki was laughing now. Horrible, grating laughter that seemed to worm its way into Magnus’ bones and strike him with a deep cold. Finally, Loki lifted a dagger that seemed built fully of shadow, and drove it into his own chest. He stopped laughing, face morphing back into Alex’s just in time for Magnus to see the life slip out of his eyes.
Magnus woke with a start, heart beating wildly in his chest. He tried to steady his breathing, to get a grip on the irrational fear that seemed to have taken control of his entire body. He felt too hot and sweaty to stay under the covers, but something was keeping him from getting up, like they were some sort of protection. Then the dream started to come back to him, and… Oh. Oh, fuck.
Alex.
Magnus stumbled out of bed, tripping over the sheets. He didn’t even bother with slippers as he fumbled with the door knob, and ventured blindly down the dark hallway of Floor 19. He couldn’t read the name plates in the pitch black, but he knew where Alex’s room was by heart. Magnus still wasn’t able to form cohesive thoughts as he tried the door. It was locked of course. AlexisdeadAlexisdead Alexisdead Alexisdead. He knocked. No answer. He knocked louder.
Then the door swung open, revealing a very pissed off looking Alex, dressed in a T-shirt — Magnus’ T-shirt he would later notice — and penguin pajama pants. Her green hair was messy and sticking up in all directions, and she just looked generally disheveled.
“This better be good, cause you woke me up at three in the fucking morning,” she hissed. “You-” But then she saw his face and her expression changed instantly to one of concern. “Magnus?”
He hadn’t realized he was crying until now, but there were definitely tears sliding down his cheeks. The back of his throat was starting to ache from trying not to sob. He could always keep it all in check until he saw her, and then a dam just seemed to break. Like as soon as he felt safe all his emotional control would just vanish.
Alex stepped back to let him into the room and he obliged. She closed the door, and then turned to look at him again. Her eyes were definitely not green, still holding their usual warmth. Right now they swan with worry.
“I-” she cut off again, hesitantly opening her arms for him; a question not a command. Magnus nodded in answer and took a step towards her. She met him halfway, hugging him tightly. He was fully crying now, quiet sobs wracking his body as he buried his face into her neck. She rubbed his back, letting him cry. Even though he should have been a little suffocated in this position, he felt instead like he could finally breathe again. Like here, surrounded by the smell of her shampoo and laundry and her he was taking his first real breath since he woke up. “You’re okay,” she murmured into his hair. “You’re okay.”
When he was finished, Alex let go. Magnus’ face was stained with salty tears and there were still blue eyes living in the back of his head. He never really got used to the nightmares, even three years later. But he felt a little better, the immediate fear that had seized him gone.
“Bad dream?” she asked.
Magnus nodded. “Yeah.”
“But you don’t wanna talk about it?”
“No.”
“Okay.”
Magnus fumbled around for words for a moment, and the ones he settled on weren’t actually very effective anyway. “Can- I mean, is it okay if- you don’t have to, but… I- um-”
“Yes, you can stay over tonight, if that’s what you mean,” Alex guessed. She hadn’t let go of his hand.
“Yes. Please.”
Alex smiled slightly, and guided him to the bed, pulling him down after her. Her covers were warmer than his, he thought absently. He had a quilt, but she had, like, five fleece blankets. That was nice. Magnus was about to shyly ask if he could be the little spoon, but Alex seemed to read his mind. She shifted him down a little bit so his head was resting against her chest, and her arm circled his shoulders. They were facing each other — the way both of them preferred — and Magnus curled tighter into her side. Alex rested her head over his, her hand coming up to card through his hair. Magnus kind of wanted to fall asleep like this every night until Ragnarok, and he was positive if he did he would never have a nightmare again.
“Hey, Alex?” Magnus whispered. Alex looked down at him, and whatever Magnus had meant to say died in his throat. Even in her just-woke-up/about-to-go-to-sleep state she still looked beautiful. Eyes, freckles, lips, nose, hair, face, eyebrows, ears, every single part of her.
“You’re glowing,” Alex noted, smiling. She had told him once in a half asleep state that she loved it when she made him glow. It came not only with his power but also with strong emotions. It’s basically the Magnus Chase equivalent of purring, she had said. You’re basically a cat anyway.
Magnus lifted his hand and saw that he was, in fact, glowing. He smiled up at her, his smile that he knew looked dumb, but he just couldn’t help it. “I love you,” he said softly.
Then with a tenderness that he sometimes forgot she had, she leaned down and kissed him gently on the nose, her smile saying her words for her. But Magnus was glad she said them aloud anyway. “I love you too.”