Chapter 19

--------

"What about the East district?" Asked Maryse.

"Also clear," Underhill replied.

"Alright, good, good," Maryse nodded. It was a bit after 10:00am in the morning, and those shadowhunters who had been out patrolling all night, were now being debriefed. "Even with the decrease in demon activity, we still need to take our patrolling seriously," Maryse continued.

One of the other two shadowhunters standing just behind Underhill, who had also been a part of his team; a young female beta with short, light brown hair, stepped forward and handed Maryse a folder. Maryse, who remained seated behind her desk, collected the folder, and immediately began scanning throught it. Once she was satisfied that everything seemed to be in order, she place it atop the stack of others she'd received that morning.

"Keep up the good work," she praised. "If there's nothing else, then you're all dismissed. Go and get some rest," she encouraged the tired looking group.

"Yes ma'am," the three shadowhunters said in unison before taking their leave.

It was then that Jace made his way into the office; just as the last shadowhunter was exiting. Taking a rigid stance with his hands held at his back, "You asked to see me?" He said in way greeting, getting straight to the point as he was in no mood for pleasantries.

Maryse looked up at him, visibly perturbed at his disrespect but choosing to ignore it. Ever since the Jonathan incident, the bad treatment she had been receiving wasn't only limit to just Alec, but Izzy and Jace as well.

"Have a seat," Maryse offered, gesturing to one of the chairs before her desk.

"I'd really much rather stand," Jace insisted, his demeanor very much that of a soldier awaiting their next order.

"Fine, suit yourself." Maryse knew that it was best not to aggravate the situation any further. She sighed softly as she stood from her chair and made her way over to the stained glass windows overlooking the now withered garden below. She stood silently for what seemed like a very long time with her hands held at her back, looking out at the scenery somewhat dazedly.

With Alec's birthday fast approaching, decisions needed to be made; there was the Promise Rites, as well as the actual Mating Cermony to worry about. The most important decision of them all however; who was to be Alec's mate? Her choices at the moment were limited. She could either continue this fight with her son, and perhaps further damage their already strained relationship. Or... she could swallow her pride and give him her support. Even if she didn't agree with his choice, at the end of the day, it was still his choice to make. And ultimately, he was the one who would be most affected by it.

Just when Jace was beginning to wonder whether Maryse was going to tell him why she had asked to see him or not, she spoke up, her words coming out very calm, as if she had reached some sort of conclusion within herself.

"I know you're all still upset with me, and admittedly all of you have every right to be. Looking back now, bringing that boy here was the biggest mistake I could have made. Now everytime I look at Alec, I can't help but think about what could have happened to him, or what he might still be going through."

Jace was bit caught off guard by this sudden statement, and was not exactly sure how he should respond. The only thought that kept coming to his mind was; why the hell are you telling me this? Shouldn't you be talking to Alec about this, maybe? In the end, he didn't need to say anything.

Maryse continued. "That being said, everything I've done is to protect him."

Jace was finally starting to understand what was going on, asking, "What about his happiness?"

For Maryse, she'd always thought that those two things correlated. If Alec was safe, then he would be happy. It wasn't until recently that she was beginning to realize that that wasn't the case. Safety did not equal happiness, and likewise happiness did not equal safety. She supposed that it was up to the individual to decide which one was more important to them.

Deciding to ignore Jace's question, she asked instead, "I heard that you kids went out lastnight....how was he?"

"Happy," Jace replied simply.

"And the warlock?"

"Happy as well," Jace replied more sarcastically this time. "If you're asking me how he treats Alec, then I'll simply tell you that he truly is Alec's mate. You only need to see them together to know."

The meaning behind his statement was not lost on Maryse, who, since that first meeting, where Alec had announced that he and Magnus would be courting, apart from politely asking of the warlock every now and then, she had been actively trying to avoid all engagements regarding the couple.

She could only nod. "Good," before once again falling silent.

Several beats passed, before seemingly having gathered her thoughts, Maryse sighed softly as she turned around to face Jace. She looked a bit tired, he thought to himself as he waited for her next words.

"Please, tell Alec to come and see me will you."

Jace nodded, and sensing that they were done, he took his leave as Maryse once again went back to her desk. This wasn't the first time that she'd called him in for a 'how's Alec doing', question and answer session. Infact, ever since he and Alec became parabatai, she would occasionally check in with him to get a sense of how Alec was doing emotionally; not that he minded, since Alec also knew about them, and he would never say anything he knew that Alec wouldn't want him to. It was just that ever since Magnus entered the picture, those little sessions have become even weirder, this one being the weirdest yet.

Once he left Maryse's office, Jace headed straight for Alec's room. The omega hadn't shown up for training or breakfast, which was only to be expected, considering that he was a bit more worse for wears than the rest of them had been lastnight. Even Simon, the light weight, had skipped training, only showing up later to have breakfast with them.

As Jace turned a corner in the direction of Alec's room, he saw Izzy coming towards him.

"Hey, what did mom want?" Asked Izzy in way of greeting. The two of them had been in the library together when he'd received the fire message.

Jace chuckled. "Whatd'ya think? Since you and Alec have been more or less giving her the cold shoulder, who else is she gonna ask for updates?"

"And what did you tell her?" Asked Izzy.

"The same thing I tell her everytime she asks me how Alec's doing; that he's happy."

"And..." Izzy pressed for more information.

"And... I think she's finally starting to realize that Magnus and Alec are for real and that there's nothing she can do about it that won't cost her, her relationship with her son. Infact, that's where I'm headed right now, she's asked me to call Alec. I think a certain dastardly warlock will probably be joining us for dinner and Mating Rites talks soon."

Izzy was beyond shocked, drawing in an exaggerated breath as her eyes widened. "You're shitting me?"

"I shit you not," Jace laughed.

Promise Rites were not unlike the mundanes engagement party, while the Mating cermony was a lot like their weddings, minus all of the silly mundane traditions of course. Each species in the shadow world had their own customs and traditions, however, the foundations were pretty much one and the same. The Promise Rites were where both families got together to give the happy couple their blessings and the go ahead to plan the Mating Ceremony. During the Promise Rite, the couple will also do as the name implies, make a promise to each other. This is where the difference in traditions comes in. Some speices make their promise with a blood oath, others do scent marking, while in the shadowhunters case, they mark each other with a special pair of runes. All of this is to temporarily connect the couple, as well as to let others know that they're, 'off the market', as one would say, while they make the necessary arrangements for their Mating Ceremony, the night of which the mating bite will take place and the couple finally and for all of eternity, become one. At least this was the proper way that things were done, but, of course in everything there would always be those exceptions. There were those who skipped the Promise Rites all together and went straight to mating, and then there were those Promise Rites that would end up being nullified.

Hearing Jace's words and what they meant, Izzy didn't know whether to jump for joy or cry. Her brother would be able to do his Promise Rites soon. "I'll come with you then," said Izzy excitedly. "I was actually planning on checking up on him anyway, see if he needed anything. He must be up by now."

With that, the two of them continued their conversation as they made their way to Alec's room, discussing what Alec's Promise Rites would look like as well as reminiscing about their own. They wondered whether Alec and Magnus would engage in a blood oath, that could only be broken by both parties agreeing, or whether they would draw runes on each other, that was, of course, if Magnus could even endure such a thing.

~ooOoo~

Magnus hadn't slept a wink.

After leaving Alec, he'd headed straight home, and the rest of the night had been spent summoning one demon after another. Despite strongly suspecting that Lilith was in the mundane world, he hadn't recalled those demons he and his father had scouring the other realms of hell for her whereabouts. Even if she wasn't in hell, it didn't mean that they couldn't still find some information that could lead them to her location, or finding out what she might have planned. So, that was how Magnus had spent majority of his night.

The rest of course had been spent thinking about his mate. More specifically, the fact that Alec had said those three heart stopping words.

I love you....

It wasn't the first time Magnus had heard those words by any means, but it was the first time that he truly believed them, the first time that he truly wanted to hear them, and the first time that they actually meant something to him.

And so, having only gone to bed in the wee hours of the morning, Magnus had slept in as well. Getting out of bed, the warlock made his way into the bathroom. After showering, and making a few phone calls, perhaps running one or two errands, he would then meet up with Alec for lunch. He was really looking forward to seeing Alec today, maybe even more so than usual, if that was at all possible.

As Magnus brushed his teeth, he couldn't help but smile as he thought about his poor little baby experiencing his first ever hangover. Sighing, he really wished he could have been there to see it, nurse his baby back to health. He could even do the whole sexy nurse outfit thing, he chuckled to himself. Anyways...

It wasn't too late, Magnus thought.

And as he went about the rest of his daily routine, those thoughts grew and different ideas began to take shape. His thoughts came full circle, right back to where he'd started; thinking about Alec saying those three little words. He began to think about different ways that he could go about confessing his own feelings. At first, his original plan was to confess at their Mating Ceremony or even during their Promise Rites, but honestly with everything going on, and Alec's own drunken confession lastnight, Magnus did not want to wait even another moment. Even if Alec was probably only dreaming and wouldn't remember anything once he woke up... It was time. Time to take the next step in their relationship.

Magnus spent the rest of his shower, running images of the world's most beautiful parks and gardens through his mind, trying to find the best one to take Alec to for their lunch date. Alec loved picnics, so maybe they could have lunch in the park. But not just any park, it had to be the best.

Today is the day I tell my mate how much I love him.

The love stricken warlock was so lost in his own world filled with rainbows and unicorns, that he did not hear his phone ringing in the other room.

~ooOoo~

After knocking for the umteenth time, there was still no answer. While Jace looked a bit worried, Izzy couldn't help but smirk.

"I bet Magnus is in there with him and that's why he doesn't wanna answer the door," She chuckled. Her prude of a brother had indeed become very bold lately.

Jace frowned at the implication, saying simply, "Call him."

Izzy took her cellphone out from her overly tight pants pocket. Pressing the correct icons on the screen, she brought the phone up to her ear.

However, there was no answer. Alec's phone kept ringing, going to voicemail each time.

"He's not answering," said Izzy in frustration, looking to Jace as if asking what she should do next. "I swear...!" Izzy shouted as she started knocking on the door once again, this time even harder, the phone still to her ear. "Don't make me use the unlock rune, Alec!"

Still, there was no answer, neither at the door, nor on the phone.

"Are you sure he didn't go out with Magnus?" Jace's brows knitted together in question.

"He would never leave the the Institute without at least telling one of us," Izzy argued as she took out her stele. "Alec!" She shouted at the door again as she began drawing the unlock rune. "You better stop whatever you're doing. We're coming in." With that, she pushed the door open.

The room was empty.

"Hmm," Izzy frowned, glancing around the room. "I can't believe he would go out and not tell anyone." She made her way over to the bed as Jace went into the bathroom to check.

"Well, wherever he went, he seemed to have left in a hurry," said Jace as he came back into the room. "He didn't even make his bed," he noted, gesturing to the messy unkept bed. They all knew how much of a neat freak Alec was, so this strucked him as a bit strange, though not really that unfathomable.

Izzy plopped down on the bed as she tried calling Alec yet again.

Suddenly, a light buzzing sounded in the room.

Both Jace and Izzy looked at each other in surprise. It was obvious that the buzzing sound was coming from Alec's phone, and after searching for a little while, following the direction of the noise, they found the phone buried underneath Alec's pillows. It was then that they also noticed what looked like one of Magnus' little potion bottles, as well a bottle of water, and a simple bottle of asprins on the bedside table.

Both Jace and Izzy were starting to feel a little bit anxious, though still trying not to over think the situation.

Izzy automatically checked Alec's phone, seeing nothing out of the ordinary except for her missed calls.

"Call Magnus," Jace instructed after a moment.

Unfortunately it was at this time that the warlock was in the shower with his head high in the clouds, and thus, he did not hear his phone ringing.

"There's no response," said Izzy after trying several times. "The two of them are probably off somewhere together doing Angel knows what. Those jerks." She frowned as she stood up from Alec's bed. "Why else would they both be missing at the same time. I bet they're doing the deed." She grumbled the last bit, however, Jace still heard and was ready to defend his parabatai's dignity, giving her a stern look that said she needed to take back her words.

"Fine..." Izzy drawled, rolling her eyes at him. "Maybe they're not doing that. Anyways... Can you feel anything through your bond?" She then asked, looking at Jace expectantly.

Jace closed his eyes, trying to sense Alec. After about a minute, he shook his head. "Everything feels normal."

"Alright," said Izzy. "Let's just check a few of his usual hideouts, then try calling Magnus again later."

Jace agreed, and the two of them left Alec's bedroom. But, even as they'd both come to the same conclusion, that Alec was infact most likely just off somewhere with his mate, there was still an air of worry surrounding them.

For Izzy, this was very unlike Alec to disappear without telling her anything.

And for Jace, everything felt calm with their parabatai bond. But then that was also the problem the more he thought about it and the more he reached out to Alec. Whenever Alec was with Magnus, he would always feel an extra boost in happiness, now, it was just calm, like Alec was sleeping peacefully. Perhaps he and Magnus were asleep together and that was why the warlock wasn't answering his phone? It would also explain the calmness he felt coming from Alec.

~ooOoo~

It was another half hour later when Magnus finally got out of the shower. Using his magic, the warlock quickly got dressed, trying out various combinations, before doing his makeup.

He'd just completed the finishing touches on his hair when he heard his phone buzzing, indicating that he had received a text message.

Magnus made his way over to his bed and grabbed his phone. Right away his heart leapt, there was almost a dozen missed calls from Izzy as well as the text message that just came in.

'Magnus, please call me back as soon as you see this.' The message read.

Magnus didn't waste a second, pressing the call icon and doing just that. Normally he would have called Alec immediately after he woke up, but with how he'd left his mate lastnight, he hadn't wanted to disturb him, he just wanted to wait to see him face to face. Now with so many missed calls, and from Alec's sister nonetheless, Magnus' anxiety levels were hitting the roof. What if Alec was sick or something from drinking too much lastnight? What if....

Izzy answered on the second ring, saving Magnus from the heart attack that he was about to have.

He did not wait for a hello, immediately launching into one question after another. "What happened? Is Alexander alright? Where is he?" The worry was clear in his voice as he almost left himself breathless.

At the other end of the line, cold sweat instantly washed over Izzy's entire body as her heart beat stauled then quickened. Her voice was a shaky stutter. "Is...is he not with you?"

This question caused Magnus' already anxiety ridden heart to plummet into the bottom of his stomach. "No, of course not," he replied, a cloud of fear and confusion overtaking his features. "Why would he be with me? Isabelle, what's going on? Is Alexander missing?"

Izzy, who was now back in Alec's bedroom along with Simon as well as Jace and Clary, began pacing. "I don't know. We came to his room, but he wasn't here. We also tried calling him, but his phone is still here, so then we thought maybe he was with you, but now...." Izzy didn't finish her sentence.

"I'm on my way," said Magnus. And by the time he ended the call, he already had a portal opened.

In mere seconds, Magnus was standing in front of the Institute, his heart racing as he made his way inside. Already, he could tell that something was off. He tried to calm his mind, telling himself to check first, not to overreact; that Alec was probably just hiding out somewhere, that the omega probably just wanted some time to himself, that the Institute was secured, he'd made sure of it.

Clary had rushed to the entrance hall to meet him. "Did you guys find him?" Magnus asked the moment his eyes landed on her slightly panting frame.