Work Text:
If Magnus Bane could choose to master one skill for the rest of his life, it would be the ability to make Alec laugh every day.
Magnus knows his boyfriend isn’t the warm and fuzzy type most of the time. It’s not Alec’s fault. As the leader of the New York Institute with a maniac like Valentine Morgenstern is on the rise, he doesn’t have many opportunities for fun. Magnus cherishes the fact that he is one of the few people who have the privilege of seeing Alec’s soft side.
It pains Magnus to know how much pressure Alec is almost always dealing with, especially when he knows about Alec’s tendency to sacrifice his own happiness for the good of others. His enduring selflessness is one of the things Magnus loves about him, but it could also be his downfall.
Magnus would do almost anything to alleviate the constant burden his boyfriend bears. And it was on one rare, relaxed morning when he realized he had a gift that could allow him to do just that.
1.
They were eating breakfast in bed together. Alec, always an early riser even when he had the opportunity to sleep in, had woken up with enough time to prepare a simple meal of eggs and toast before Magnus could get up.
Magnus woke to the smell of buttered bread and the feeling of long fingers running through his hair. Rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, he squinted at the plates of food laid on the tray in front of him, and his expression turned from confusion to amazement. He shifted his appreciative gaze up to Alec, who stood on the other side of the bed.
“You really are a big sweetheart aren’t you? You just don’t want the secret to get out to too many people?”
Alec’s lips rose in a smug smile, and he shrugged in answer. Magnus beamed and reached his arm out to grab Alec’s hand and pull him onto the mattress, careful not to jostle the food. He leaned up to meet Alec’s lips in a soft kiss. They lingered there for a moment, exchanging quiet pecks and enjoying the closeness.
“Thank you for this,” Magnus whispered against Alec’s lips.
“Don’t have to thank me,” Alec mumbled when they separated fully. He smiled at Magnus, his eyes bright. “I wanted to do it.”
“I know. But that doesn’t mean you don’t deserve some words of praise. You don’t nearly get enough of that, you know.”
Alec blushed, not used to being complimented so often. The grin remained on his face, however, and he turned toward their breakfast. “Come on. Let’s eat before it gets cold.”
Magnus insisted on clearing the dishes after they were finished, despite Alec’s protests that he cooked the meal for Magnus in the first place, so he should also clean up the mess. In the end, Magnus had to resort to threats to get his way.
“Not that tying you to the bed should ever be considered a punishment, truthfully,” Magnus said, relishing the flush that crept up Alec’s face at his suggestion. He took the shadowhunter’s moment of distraction to snatch the tray and dash out of the bedroom, ignoring Alec’s yells of indignation.
When he came back into the room, smiling, he was met with the sight of his boyfriend looking less than chipper. The cell phone in his hand gave Magnus a pretty good idea of what had ruined Alec’s mood.
“Work?”
Alec looked up at him, exasperation plain on his face. He rolled his eyes and ran a hand through his messy hair, trying to tame it into some semblance of order. “This was the first day off I’ve had in forever. I hope for their sakes it’s something important enough to justify bothering me this early, but apparently these shadowhunters can’t function for a single day without me there to babysit them.”
Magnus could see how stressed and frustrated Alec was, and he smiled sympathetically. Making his way to sit next to him on the bed, Magnus grabbed one of Alec’s hands and brought it to his lips to kiss the back of his palm gently. “It just means you’re important, darling. You have knowledge the others need. It’s good that you’re so valuable to them. The head of the Institute should be.”
Alec scoffed at that and stood up, searching for where he threw his shirt the night before. “Yeah, right. Aldertree still maintains that title, technically.” He found his shirt and pulled it over his head, muffling his next words. “Even though I’ve been calling the shots for weeks now. He just holes up in his office and feels important.”
“Aldertree... what a pompous son of a bitch,” Magnus sneered, sitting up against the headboard of his bed as he watched his boyfriend change clothes. He stroked his goatee in a mocking fashion, and his lips pulled down into the same frown he saw Aldertree give him the last time they interacted. “What an honor it is to serve my duty to the Clave by perfecting the art of sitting on my sorry ass all day,” Magnus said with an exaggerated British accent. He would have continued his impression if he wasn’t stopped in his tracks by a sound he never heard before.
Alec snorted. It was a big one, too. One that came up from the back of his throat and burst out of him loudly, splitting his face into a wide smile, and receded with a few short chuckles.
He and Magnus both stilled when they realized what happened. Magnus remained silent, not quite sure he heard correctly.
Alec. Snorted.
Magnus looked up at Alec, who was still frozen. Blotches of bright red crept up his neck and made its way onto his cheeks. Magnus was delighted. A shit-eating grin grew wider and wider on his face, until finally he couldn’t stay quiet any longer.
“What was that, dear?”
That made Alec move, even if it was only to glare threateningly at him. “Not a word.”
“Oh, but I have so much to say Alexander!” Magnus clapped his hands together and hopped up from the bed. Alec rolled his eyes and zipped up his jeans, determined to continue getting dressed. “I must say I’m a little concerned,” Magnus said sarcastically, heedless of his boyfriend ignoring him. “I’m happy that you get so much joy out of watching me mock a respected Clave representative, but it may not be the safest thing to find amusing in your position. I suggest — ” Magnus was cut off by Alec covering his mouth with his hand.
“Shut. Up.” Alec growled while Magnus laughed under his palm. Magnus brought both hands to his face to take Alec’s hand away, and he leaned up to kiss his cheek.
“I think it’s adorable. And don’t worry, I will keep this between us,” Magnus said while one hand carded through Alec’s hair, straightening out the wild strands.
Alec’s cheeks were still red and he rolled his eyes again, but this time there was unmistakable fondness on his face. He brought his head down to brush his lips against Magnus’. “I’ll try to be back as soon as I can,” he whispered.
“I know,” Magnus breathed back. He pulled away to grab Alec’s jacket from a chair in the corner. Handing it to him, he said, “Now go save the world.” Alec smiled and pulled on the jacket.
“And be safe,” Magnus added, just as he was about to leave.
“Always.”
Magnus watched him leave, smiling to himself as he reminisced about their morning. When he recalled the moment when Alec laughed, his chest swelled with affection. It had been a split second, but Magnus wondered if Alec could remember the last time he laughed like that, so carefree despite all of the other responsibilities he always had to juggle.
In that moment he knew that he would do whatever it took to make Alec laugh again, and soon.
2.
Magnus tried very hard over the next few days to make Alec laugh like he had that morning. He made jokes, mocked people he knew Alec didn’t care for, he even resorted to some cleverly placed puns, but nothing seemed to get the same results. He received plenty of big smiles — which he adored, don’t get him wrong — but he also got a handful of eye rolls and even a few scoffs at some of his particularly bad puns. The closest he ever got was a breathless huff one night when they were already a bit tipsy, and Magnus didn’t know how much that counted.
Then one day Magnus and Alec were relaxing together in his living room. Magnus was filling him in on the latest downworld gossip — all so Alec, as the head of the Institute, would have the important inside information, of course — when Jace barged into the loft and interrupted them, again.
Magnus scowled at him from the couch as the blond shadowhunter made his way inside. “You know, I thought once you moved back into the Institute you would have less of a reason to keep interrupting me and my business.”
“Huh, I didn’t realize you considered what you do with Alec to be business,” Jace retorted.
“If you must know, we were just discussing sensitive information about downworlder relations.”
“Sure. You know, I might have believed you if it weren’t for the gigantic hickeys all over my brother’s neck,” he shot back. Whoops, Magnus had forgotten about those.
“Jace. What do you want?” Alec said. He was bright red, but he wasn’t moving to cover his neck in any way.
“I need your help.” Jace addressed his words to Magnus, who groaned.
“What a surprise,” Magnus said in a flat tone. Then he gave a resigned sigh. “What can I help you with Jace?”
That wasn’t an invitation for Jace to start a long-winded story about the dry spell he was currently having, but Jace took it as one. By the time he was almost finished with his rant, Alec and Magnus sat together staring at him with identical disbelieving expressions.
“And, I mean, you’re the owner of Pandemonium. You’ve been to plenty of clubs in your day and have established a bit of a reputation…” Jace trailed off for a moment when his eyes met Alec’s narrowed ones. “Well, I know you don’t have those habits as much nowadays, but still! I’m sure you have some tricks up your sleeve, and every time I go to a bar or a club I always seem to lose the mojo I used to have. Would you help a guy out?”
By now Magnus’ head was buried in his hands. “Jace,” he said, getting up from the couch and gesturing for Jace to stand as well. He led them toward the front door, Alec trailing a few steps behind. “You don’t need my help. You’re a charming young man. You will get your groove back eventually. And when you do, you don’t want it to be because of the advice you got from a 400-year-old warlock, do you?”
Jace slowed to a stop near the door, contemplating his words. Slowly a smirk graced his face. “Yeah, you’re right, man. The ladies can’t resist all this forever.”
Alec had to use a lot of willpower not to roll his eyes.
“They most certainly can’t,” Magnus said with a smile that was clearly forced. He pat Jace on the shoulder. “Now you go get them, shadowhunter.”
Magnus pushed Jace out the door before he could say anything else. Without saying a word, Magnus took a few steps back to stand next to Alec, both of them looking at the door in a somewhat bewildered silence.
“Oh, what a difficult life that boy leads,” Magnus finally said.
Alec didn’t say anything in response. As the silence went on, Magnus became worried that he somehow offended Alec with his comment. When he turned to check on him, however, he found Alec with his hand clasped over his mouth, shoulders hunched and shaking in silent laughter. All of Magnus’ worries evaporated, and he smirked at his boyfriend. Alec’s laughter was getting louder now, his breath leaving him in short, loud exhales. He took the hand that was over his mouth and clutched his stomach, shifting closer to Magnus.
“Oh… oh my god… I’m sorry,” he said in between bouts of laughter. He wiped a tear away from his eye as he started to calm down. “I’m sorry. You’re right, though! I know my brother has had a tough couple of months, but he can be such an idiot sometimes, you know?” He let out a few chuckles again. “I just want to shake him sometimes.”
Magnus understood what Alec meant. The Lightwood family had been through hell and back recently. But they were still just kids, and sometimes their priorities were really mixed up. That was an especially big problem for Jace.
He knew Alec would do just about anything to save his family, including give up his own life, so Magnus couldn’t imagine how frustrating it must be for him to see his brother so obsessed with something so inconsequential. Alec’s laughter was as much of a release of his pent up stress as it was out of genuine amusement over Magnus’ barb.
Taking a step closer, Magnus wrapped his arms around Alec’s waist, smiling at him warmly. Alec returned the smile, his eyes bright after his laughing fit. “Listen, if that is the biggest problem your brother is dealing with right now, then you should not be worrying about him, okay?”
Alec laughed again. And although this time it lasted a much shorter period, it pleased Magnus all the same. “I’m sorry he is the way that he is. You dealt with him well, though. When in doubt, stroking Jace’s ego is always the safe bet.”
This time it was Magnus who laughed.
3.
After that, Magnus realized that he didn’t need to put so much effort into making Alec laugh. Each time he succeeded before he wasn’t trying to get that sort of response out of him. Magnus supposed Alec was just unpredictable that way.
A few weeks later, however, he accidentally stumbled upon a sure-fire way to make Alec laugh every time.
Magnus was up later than usual. He absolutely was not looking at his phone every few minutes, checking to see if a certain shadowhunter had texted him to reassure Magnus that he was safe and sound.
Alec was on a late-night mission to infiltrate what they thought might be Valentine’s newest hideout. He had been sent on so many dangerous missions lately. Valentine was letting most of his experiments loose, leading to outbreaks of violence throughout all of New York City.
Magnus knew Alec and the other shadowhunters were necessary, but that didn’t alleviate his worries. There was a part of Magnus that wanted to ask Alec if he could go with him and fight, if only to make sure his boyfriend had that extra level of protection. But Magnus knew he was more useful off the battlefield than on, and he wasn’t about to be selfish in such a dark time.
Alec told him he would likely sleep in the Institute that night, even though he had been living with Magnus for almost three months now. The mission was projected to run late into the night and it would almost definitely drain each shadowhunter involved. But Alec also promised Magnus that he would text him when he got back, so he wouldn’t stay up worrying like he was now. Alec had fulfilled that promise every other time he stayed over at the Institute after a mission. All Magnus could do was stew in his thoughts and try to block out the horrible image of Alec bleeding out on a random city sidewalk.
Magnus was broken out of his musings by the sound of the front door opening. His entire body slumped in relief at the sight of Alec dragging his feet inside, completely exhausted, but otherwise unharmed. Part of Magnus wanted to yell at him — demand to know why Alec hadn’t contacted him at all to let him know he was safe. But he recognized that Alec’s fatigue was bone-deep, and he knew any attempt at an argument wouldn’t be well-received. Fighting was pointless anyway. Alec was home, and he was safe.
Alec sat his bow and arrow haphazardly in the entryway as he made his way over to the couch, and he collapsed into the cushions next to Magnus. He let out a pleasured groan at the feeling.
“I’m sorry I didn’t text or call you,” Alec mumbled. “It was a tough mission. I didn’t want to stay there. Just wanted to see you.”
Alec was nearly non-verbal, he was so tired. He looked relieved to finally be off his feet, but Magnus could see there was still a heaviness to him that had nothing to do with his exhaustion. He didn’t want to ask about the mission right now though, didn’t want to know what Alec had seen or if they had lost anyone. He knew Alec wouldn’t want to talk about it either. It was a conversation for another time.
Instead, Magnus placed a hand on Alec’s shoulder and gently pulled Alec down. “Here, lay on your stomach.” Alec looked confused, but he complied nonetheless. Once the shadowhunter was situated, Magnus swung a leg over to straddle his back. Alec’s body tensed at the feeling.
“Magnus what — ” Alec cut off with a gasp when Magnus rubbed a tense portion of his neck.
“I think you’ve earned some warlock TLC after the day you’ve had,” Magnus shushed any attempts at protest and kneaded his hands further into Alec’s shoulders. “Don’t move, just let me work. You can fall asleep. We can talk about whatever you want to talk about. Just let me take care of you, sweetheart.”
Alec hummed in satisfaction when Magnus reached a large knot near his bicep, and he relaxed further into the cushions. Every so often, he would ask Magnus to move slightly to the right or left so he could better get at a problem area, but for the most part Alec remained silent.
He made it all the way down to the bottom of Alec’s hamstrings and was moving to his calves when his fingers brushed the back of Alec’s knees and Magnus heard him let out an honest-to-god giggle.
Alec froze, as though he was as shocked by his reaction as Magnus was. Using his boyfriend’s still figure to his advantage, Magnus dug his fingers a little harder into the soft flesh behind Alec’s kneecap. Alec jerked like he had been electrocuted, barking out loud bursts of involuntary laughter in between shouts of protest. Magnus continued on, merciless.
“Magnus- no… stop- you suck!” Alec yelled through his giggles as he fought to free himself from Magnus’ clutches. He managed to turn over and grab both Magnus’ hands, pulling him closer as the warlock tried to fight him off. “Enough, please,” Alec begged, out of breath.
Magnus smirked, thrilled at the sight of Alec’s smile following his attack. He noticed that Alec’s shoulders no longer seemed to carry so much weight as they did when he first arrived, so Magnus considered his mission accomplished. He brought his hands — still grasped in Alec’s own — up to cup the shadowhunter’s face.
“But you’re just too adorable for me to handle sometimes, Alexander. I mean, you’re ticklish!” Alec tried to glare at him, but the effect was undermined by his grin that wouldn’t go away. “What do you expect me to do after learning that?” Magnus’ eyes lit up as an idea occurred to him. “Wait, are you ticklish anywhere else?”
Alec gave him a warning look, but he released his hands to wrap his arms around Magnus’ waist. “I’ll never tell. And you’re not going to tell anyone else, either. It would ruin my reputation.”
Magnus smirked again. He ran his hands down Alec’s torso, and his smirk turned devilish when Alec jumped and bit his lip to stifle a laugh when his fingers grazed his ribs. “Don’t worry tough guy, I’ll only pull this secret weapon out for emergencies.”
4.
“Damnit Simon!”
Alec grumbled into his pillow, rolling over on the bed. Without looking up, he reached out with one hand and grabbed his phone from the nightstand. Squinting one eye open, he checked the time on his phone. 7:12. Alec groaned. After coming home well past two in the morning for the third time that week, Magnus pushed him onto their bed and gave him specific orders to sleep in until ten at the very earliest.
But he couldn’t just ignore it when Magnus yelled like that. Alec knew that tone meant Magnus was truly upset about something, and he also knew about Simon’s penchant for trouble. If there was something wrong, Alec would never forgive himself if he didn’t take the opportunity to help. Dragging his body out of the bed, Alec lumbered his way into the living room to find Magnus glaring at a smartphone.
“What has the vampire done now?”
Magnus looked up at his entrance, and his frustrated expression quickly turned distraught. “Oh darling, I’m sorry I woke you. Go back to sleep.”
Alec waved off Magnus’ concern, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes with his other hand. “No, it’s fine. It’s past seven. What’d Simon do?”
Magnus still looked disappointed to see him awake, but he just sighed and held up his hand that held the phone. “I was helping him with something yesterday, and the kid left his phone here again. I just found it under the coffee table. This is the sixth time this month he’s forgotten it. He’s so careless! One of these days he’s going to be in serious trouble, and he won’t be able to call anyone for help because he left his phone at a random park or something.”
Alec’s chin tilted up in understanding. Not many people realized how deeply Magnus cared about the well-being of his friends, but Alec witnessed it every day. It irked him to see Magnus so upset over Simon’s stupidity. “I could talk to him. I’m pretty sure he’s still terrified of me,” he said with a proud smirk.
Magnus’ frown lifted into a smile at that. “I believe that’s true, but there’s no need. I can handle this situation myself.”
At Alec’s curious look, Magnus’ smile widened. He held his other hand over the smartphone. Blue smoke drifted out of his palm and encased the device, and the phone let out a few small sparks. Alec raised his eyebrows, his curiosity increasing. Magnus’ smile was smug now. He pressed a finger against the screen, and Simon’s voice came out from the speaker.
“Hello, you’ve reached Simon Lewis. I’m not able to take your call right now because, like an imbecile, I have left my phone at the residence of the magnificent Magnus Bane, who has much better taste in both fashion and men than I do, I might add. Please leave a message.”
“That ought to teach him a lesson, don’t you think?” Magnus smirked at Alec, who was snickering. The sight of Alec so amused because of him gave Magnus more joy than anything, including the success of his revenge on Simon. “Is there anything else you think I should add?”
Alec continued to chuckle at Magnus’ mischief, and he shrugged sarcastically. “I don’t know. I thought it was pretty good. You could include something about Magnus Bane’s amazing boyfriend who is quick to get irritated with idiotic vampires who leave their phones lying around in his home?” Alec suggested with an air of fake innocence, and Magnus beamed at him.
“You always have the best ideas.”
5.
Magnus was not happy.
He had spent the day in India working together with the High Warlock of Mumbai to try to repair the damage that a vengeful werewolf pack had left in several villages. The work went smoothly — it was what happened afterward that got him so upset.
He should have thought twice about the time of year it was. The people of India were celebrating Holi, the festival of colors. And Magnus had forgotten that the High Warlock of Mumbai had a terrible habit of liking to have "fun" with visitors who came to his region. Magnus didn't think to be suspicious when the warlock opened a portal and said he wanted to celebrate a job well done with him over drinks. So when he came through the other side of the portal, he was completely blindsided by colored powder and water balloons that were suddenly being thrown at him out of nowhere.
Magnus actually enjoyed Holi. He participated in the festival many times before. However, when he participated, he was always careful to wear clothes he was okay with getting stained, and not a $3,000 suit.
Magnus grumbled as he tried and failed to remove the paint and powder from his outfit. The warlock had enchanted the colors to stay on; although he gleefully assured Magnus it would fade within a week.
As he told him this, strands of Magnus' hair, coated in green and yellow paint, flopped over his face, and the warlock was reduced to incoherent chortles again. Magnus huffed in annoyance and summoned a portal to New York. He just wanted to go home and take a shower. Even if he couldn't get rid of the bright colors, he could at least make sure he felt clean again, and not like he had a layer of filth all over him.
However, when he stepped into his bedroom he did not expect to come face-to-face with Alec, who was just leaving the bathroom, his toothbrush sticking out of his mouth.
‘Shit.’ Magnus was so flustered by the surprise paint attack he encountered in India, he forgot about the time difference that happened when he used portals to travel great distances. It was still early morning in New York, and Alec was getting ready for work.
If Magnus hadn’t been covered in bright colors, Alec might have made the more amusing picture. He was only wearing a pair of black boxers, his hair was in complete disarray, and as he continued to stare at Magnus, a little bit of toothpaste peaked out of his mouth and ran down his chin. He wiped it away with the back of his hand.
Magnus opened his mouth to try and explain his current state, but he couldn’t find anything to say. Before he could speak, Alec held up one finger and retreated into the bathroom. Magnus could hear him spitting into the sink, and then he was back again without the toothbrush. Alec’s lips were pressed together, clearly trying to hold back his laughter. His shoulders shook and pitched forward a little as he tried to restrain his mirth.
Magnus tried to give him a flat look, but the effect was marred by the corner of his lips turning up. He was a weak man. As displeased as he was about the paint, he would never miss an opportunity to see his boyfriend laugh, even if it was at his expense. He gave an exaggerated sigh and said, “Do what you’re going to do.”
That was enough for the dam to break and set Alec off in a fit of hysterical laughter. He hunched over, one hand on his stomach and his eyes squeezed shut, although he fought to keep them open to keep looking at Magnus. His took big, heaving breaths in between his laughs, tears leaking from his eyes.
Alec seemed like could continue to laugh until he suffocated himself. Magnus tried to keep up his disgruntled façade to play along — and maybe to preserve a bit of his dignity. “Okay, you really are the worst boyfriend, you know? You should have seen what this expensive outfit looked like before it was ruined by all of this. It was fabulous.”
Calming down a bit at the sight of Magnus’ frown, Alec smiled warmly at him. “Oh honey,” he chuckled again and held his fist over his lips to muffle the laughs that were trying to break through. Taking a deep breath, he continued. “Why are you so upset? You know that every color looks good on you.”
Magnus narrowed his eyes at Alec as the shadowhunter surrendered to more helpless giggling. ‘What a smartass,’ he thought. Just then, a wicked idea popped into his head, and he smirked.
“Of course. I’m just wondering if you can pull them off as well as I can?”
Alec’s laughter subsided abruptly and his eyes widened in horror as Magnus started to walk toward him, his arms outstretched in search of a hug. “Magnus, no!” He bolted from the room, and Magnus ran after him.
“But Alexander, I missed you so much while I was away! I just want to give my lovely shadowhunter boyfriend some affection! Is that too much to ask?” Magnus yelled after him as he chased Alec through the loft. He laughed as Alec tossed some throw pillows behind him at Magnus, trying to keep him away.
After a few minutes of Alec successfully evading Magnus’ clutches, the warlock had had enough. He conjured a tendril of magic and launched it at Alec, the glowing blue rope winding around his torso and pulling him into Magnus’ arms.
“No, that’s so unfair!” Alec whined, but he was laughing as Magnus squeezed him and rubbed his bright blue cheek against Alec’s shoulder. A few seconds later, Alec resigned to his fate and draped an arm around Magnus in return, running his other hand through Magnus’ hair. “The only color I can pull off is black, and you know it.”
“I know no such thing. The only color you like to wear is black, but you look beautiful in so many colors, Alexander.” Magnus rubbed his thumb across Alec’s exposed collarbone, wiping a green streak on his skin. “Green especially — it brings out your eyes.”
Alec released a put-upon sigh and looked down at their paint-covered bodies. “Well, I guess we have to take a shower together now to get all this paint off. What a nuisance,” he said sarcastically as he grinned at Magnus.
“Oh, it won’t wash off,” Magnus said with an evil smirk, and the smile disappeared from Alec’s face.
“What.”
“The High Warlock of Mumbai is a mischievous little devil. He enchanted the paint so that it would fade in about a week.”
“Magnus!”
“Darling, it’s fine. Most of it is on your torso anyway, it will barely be noticeable unless you take your shirt off.” Magnus continued to smile, but Alec was still glaring at him, so Magnus rubbed his palms against his back soothingly. “It won’t be the end of the world if people see it either way. God knows you shadowhunters deserve a laugh every once in a while, especially given everything you’re dealing with at the moment.”
Alec’s glare had receded, but his face was somber now as he remembered the grave situation they were in. Valentine was growing stronger, and soon he would be unstoppable. Alec hated feeling so helpless. He knew he wouldn’t be strong enough to save the people he loved from Valentine’s wrath, and the thought ate at him.
Magnus berated himself for reminding Alec of how dark the world was getting. He needed to return to the previous light atmosphere they enjoyed earlier, so he stepped away from Alec and grabbed his hand, leading him back to their bedroom.
“What are you doing?” Alec asked.
“You said you wanted us to take a shower.”
Alec looked confused, but it was better than the miserable look he held a second ago. “I thought you said the paint wouldn’t come off?”
Magnus smiled at him over his shoulder as they entered the bathroom. He turned the shower on and stripped his paint-spotted blazer off his body and threw it at Alec, who chuckled and tossed it to the side. “Yes, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t take one together anyway.”
1.
Izzy looked on fondly as Jace and Simon fought over which movie they should all watch together. Simon was insistent that they watch “Star Wars: A New Hope,” because so many in their group had yet to see it.
“What?” Jace sounded appalled. “If you want to introduce us to a film series, shouldn’t we start on the first episode? Why would you want us to begin on the fourth?”
Simon looked like he was about to blow a gasket.
Jace surprised everybody when he suggested they watch an old classic like “Citizen Kane” or “Gone With The Wind.”
“What?” Jace asked defensively. “They’re classics. I’m not that uncultured.”
Knowing that Jace and Simon would continue to fight until they were both blue in the face, Izzy stood from her seat and made her way to Magnus’ kitchen to check on Clary, who was preparing their snacks. Magnus insisted their group of misfits get together to relax and watch movies at his apartment as a way to unwind and celebrate the end of a brutal war.
Izzy still couldn’t believe it. They did it. They won. Valentine was really gone.
“How’s it coming in here?” Izzy asked as she entered the kitchen and observed Clary mixing a bowl of dipping sauce.
“I’m almost done,” Clary said cheerfully, but her smile fell when a terrible thought occurred to her. “Wait, you weren’t sent in to help, were you?”
She rolled her eyes and waved off her concern. “No, Jace and Simon are just bickering like an old married couple again. I swear, those two will — ”
Izzy was interrupted by a noise coming from the living room.
It was a laugh. Alec’s laugh.
Izzy paused to consider the sound. She couldn’t remember the last time she had heard her big brother laugh, at least not like that. Alec was rarely amused by things, and lately he had been especially serious as he was focused on leading the Institute and defeating Valentine.
If Izzy had seen Alec laugh at all within the last year or so, it was only soft snickers that were barely audible. Even then, those were rare. It was nothing like the deep belly laughs she heard from him now.
Ignoring Clary’s curious gaze, Izzy pivoted and walked back into the living room. Jace and Simon were still arguing, of course, and Alec and Magnus were sitting together on the couch. Alec’s head was tilted back as he laughed, presumably at something Magnus said, if the way the warlock was beaming at Alec was any indication. Izzy felt her heart warm as she watched Magnus gaze at her brother as though he was the only good thing in the entire world.
Jace and Simon continued on with their quarrel, as though the sight of Alec laughing so openly wasn’t unusual at all. And maybe it wasn’t, Izzy supposed. Magnus and Alec had been together awhile, almost a year and a half, so it probably should be expected. But Izzy was so used to seeing Alec with all of his walls up. The sight of him like this was unsettling, but in the best way possible.
Izzy was so lost in her thoughts, she didn’t notice that Alec’s laughs had subsided and Jace and Simon had paused their bickering when they noticed her standing there frozen. The four men were staring at her with varying levels of concern.
“You okay Iz?” Jace asked, and Izzy shook herself out of her reverie. She smirked at Jace and Simon.
“We’re watching ‘Die Hard.’ Get over it,” Izzy said, and with that she went over to sit down on the couch next to Magnus before either of them could protest.
“Now that is a classic I can appreciate,” Magnus said. He snapped his fingers at the TV when Clary entered with the food, and the opening scene of the movie appeared on the screen.
When the rest of the group was thoroughly engrossed in the film, Izzy reached over and squeezed Magnus’ arm gently. He looked over at her and smiled.
“Thank you,” Izzy said, and Magnus looked taken aback.
“For what? This? I assure you dear, I have put much more effort into friendly get-togethers than this.”
She shook her head. “No, thank you for… for just being you, I guess. For making him happy,” she said as her eyes drifted to Alec sitting next to them.
A look of understanding crossed over Magnus’ face, and his smile warmed considerably. He took her hand in one of his and squeezed it. “The pleasure is mine, Isabelle.”