#magnus has enough shit from you and your fellow shadowhunters

[changhomin-hatsukoi]

I’m not angry that Alec didn’t know that it was Magnus in Valentine’s body. Obviously it’s normal that he would be suspicious that it was just Valentine messing with his mind. 

I’m not angry at Jace for convincing Alec to ignores what (Magnus) Valentine said as Jace certainly had experienced in dealing with Valentine being an asshole plus Jace wasn’t even that close to Magnus in the first place anyway..

I’m not angry that Alec didn’t instantly believed Magnus!Valentine even after all the private intimate details he provided when he was begging Alec to listen and believe him. Alec is a Shadowhunter and this is Valentine - literally the worst fucked up produced by Shadowhunters and so it is expected for Alec to not just simply gives in and let him go just because he mentioned Magnus’s name.

Why I was really really pissed off at Alec though: 

He did noticed ‘Magnus’ was acting strange. He did have a sliver of doubt - case in point: he consulted Jace instead of just discarding the whole thing as it was just Valentine being Valentine. 

 Obviously he might not have the power to stop the torture/execution or even to delay it a bit.. but God.. with everything they've seen and known.. is there really not even a 0.000001% he thought that it might be possible to have such a thing as body-swapping? and if there was even a minuscule of a chance, how could Alec had no problem in agreeing to continue with the torture? At the very least shouldn't he tries to just make sure that it wasnt really magnus in that Valentine's body?

He should at least showed some protest or heck, maybe just suggest that they have to investigate this further before doing anything... and certainly NOT helping the Inquisitor to tie down Mag!Valentine..! It's normal for Jace to had doubts.. after all he doesnt know Magnus like ALec should know Magnus.. but Alec.. he only stopped it when he heard it from Jace himself.

Which btw, who’s to say that Jace might not be.. i dunno~ blackmailed or mind controlled at the time. Why he believed Jace so so easily at the time? Could it be he might have some reservation about the whole thing already but is just too much of a good soldier or - I’m sorry to say this but I’m really mad here, too much a coward to stand up against what he might feel is wrong? 

Even if Alec couldn't get things to pause or whatever, just the act of trying and Magnus!Val could see that he was trying would have made a huge difference to Magnus. 

He is your boyfriend! Even if there is the slimmest of slim chance that the body swapping is true, shouldn’t you at least want to make 150% sure that the man you love really is not  in the body of the man that was about to be executed. 

Is he not worth it? 

Seriously Alec, wtf?! 

tbh, if they make malec gonna break up in the next ep.. i’ll be okay with it (at least for few episodes). Coz I don’t think it’s fair for Magnus to simply forgives and forgets everything and keep getting shit just because he is in love with someone who doesn’t even have the guts to believe in his own instinct... who would rather close his eyes and let someone who might be innocent gets punished than to break the rules... who seems to think it’s okay to go ahead with the punishment without proper investigation. 

I love malec.. obviously~.

But Magnus really deserves better. 

#personal-opinion #malec #idonthatealec #justdisappointed 

#malec #personal opinion #i'm so disappointed in you Alec #you better grovel hard #magnus has enough shit from you and your fellow shadowhunters #seriously what does magnus gets from helping them anyway? #shadowhunters

[normal-thoughts-official]

Bitch talk about rapharl teaching Alec how to cook a good meal for Magnus and both deciding to work together after lot of bickering because of Magnus bane love juices (u said in your last answer to ask u this so I now demand)(also coz I m Intruiged)

bitch i literally have already told u about this but also sure uwu

ok so like….. alec doesn’t get food. that’s just how it is. he grew up eating nothing but institute food and you can bet your ass there wasn’t seasoning on that shit. on like shadowhunter christmas or fucking something they put salt on the food and that was real adventurous. in shadowhunter culture, food was always seen as nothing but means to an end, Nourishment™ and nothing more. i’m surprised they even had shit like pancakes instead of just being like “for my patrol i am bringing this raw kale, yoghurt and rice smoothie. it is the best combination of nutrients for this time of day & activity” or just straight up eating like nutrient paste like those astronaut food thingies, but i suppose for that last one you would need technological development. do shadowhunters even have blenders tbh. anyway

the point is, food isn’t culturally an important thing for shadowhunters, which is all but canon considering the face magnus made at institute food (seriously, like… the trauma), and there is NO WAY alec knows how to cook. moreover, he doesn’t really get the inherent connection magnus has with culinary as a way to keep tradition alive and express one’s feelings, including love

but he does understand the basic fact that food matters for magnus. it’s funny to me because during s1, every time they talked about dates, alec suggested drinks (as he knew it was something magnus liked), but magnus always went for restaurants. the ethiopian place he knows, the place they went to in tokyo for their second date... i think drinking is more flirting for magnus, but going to a restaurant is more romance. because like not to slut all over the place yet again, but food is love

all of that to say (can u tell this is gonna be a really long answer) that alec is smart enough to eventually realize that magnus would love it if he made him some food. but does alec know where to start? no. he can’t like, tell a carrot apart from a broccoli tree and that’s just how it is. so, he goes to raphael for help, because he knows for a fact that raphael loves cooking and that magnus loves raphael’s cooking

and because alec is Like That his approach is very much like… “okay so teach me right now how to make a michelin star-worthy meal” and raphael is like… rubbing his temples, stressed out already, because goddamn 

so raphael has to sit down and explain the facts of life, i.e. that it doesn’t work like that, to him. cue dramatic speech about how cooking is an art, it’s not just about following a recipe. raphael could teach alec the steps to the most intricate dish, and it wouldn’t be worth anything if alec didn’t understand food, how it worked and how it meant. you don’t expect someone to draw the mona lisa just from knowing art theory. it takes practice, and love, and dedication, and raphael is willing to teach alec all that, but he has to understand that it will take a long time

and alec is like. what the fuck is a mownay leezah and raphael has to sigh and be like. cooking is like mastering a weapon. you have to train. and alec is like ah okay understandable 

cue cooking classes, which will 100% be written here like some “the hero is trained by their wise, old uncle on the ways of fighting” trope because like, yeah. so put on some music that matches that tone

so for the first class raphael puts some soup in front of alec and alec is like. hmmm. and raphael is like “take some and tell me how it tastes” and alec of course goes all “soup……” and raphael raises his eyebrows at him and he’s like “vegetable soup……” and raphael makes go on gestures as patiently as he can and alec is like “i think there’s……….. potato” 

so speech number 1: to be able to cook, you need to know how to eat. cooking is something that you do with all your senses. you need to be able to taste, and tell what’s missing, or if there’s too much of something, and if the texture is right, etc. you need to know what you’re looking for, you need to understand how to improvise, you need to pay attention and be in tune with it. you have to understand the ingredients. and alec is just like, nodding along and doing his best, because look. he might be a himbo with no previous experience on this and he might have no idea what raphael is talking about, but he does want to get this right, and understand this part of magnus better, too. only reason he’s not taking notes is because raphael looked at his notepad like he was going to die

alec takes to describing and understanding textures pretty well (hypersensitivity, babey!), but struggles a lot more with tastes because he doesn’t really have the apparel to describe it accurately due to lack of experience with that. which quickly makes raphael kinda.. sad. he went years without eating (he WILL find a way to be able to eat AND be still a vampire if it’s the LAST THING I DO IN THIS STUPID LIFE) but he can still tell what everything tastes like from memory. it’s not that alec can’t tell, he just… doesn’t know what to do with them because he was raised in a culture that literally didn’t care (and possibly forced him to eat Bad Texture foods and shit like that because it’s not like he has the space to complain about that, does he? and as a fellow autistic raphael can sympathize with that very, very well) 

so slowly but surely alec starts to pick up on tastes and describing and telling them apart and recognizing them when together, you know, shit like this. and sometimes he can recognize something from places magnus has taken him to before and he’s like oh, ginger! that’s what it was! magnus likes this, and his eyes are so full of love raphael has no choice but to huff like a kid because he can’t be caught thinking that it’s cute that alec loves his dad so much

(but it earns him many points in raphael’s book)

once alec graduates in Eating, they go to speech number 2: Why You Have To Vibe With The Ingredients. maia is there for that one because i said so, and anyway they need to get to taki’s to have this particular class because they grow at least some ingredients there okay let me have this (one of the things that made maia’s heart melt for raphael the most was seeing the way he was so careful and loving with the plants, like….. especially if they’ve started working together before raphael could eat food, he would just treat them with so much care and longing and put his all into making sure they grew healthy and well and it was just… heartwarming and heart wrenching in equal measures). but anyway she mostly takes to sitting on the counter, watching this unfold, and being very amused

so raphael shows alec, who promptly almost steps on a really small basil tree, leading raphael to scream NO!!! like he is dying and making maia almost double over with laughter, what they have. obviously they can’t grow enough shit to run a whole ass restaurant but they have almost all kinds of herbs and a few quick-to-grow, easy-to-take-care-of ingredients like tomatoes and squash. bonus for these ones: their fruits are also very visible! so raphael gets to show alec how they grow, what the texture is like, how much they weight, etc. obviously he doesn’t expect alec to grow his own ingredients or anything, but it is important to pick the right ones, otherwise no matter what you do, your food will suck. and seeing some examples of them growing might help you understand why and how that works

so raphael goes around to teaching him how to select the best ingredients according to type of vegetable, then meat, chicken, etc. and like not to slut over raphael but for just a second can i say that he’s just… such a patient fucking teacher, even when alec makes him want to die on the spot, and he is clearly so passionate about the subject, like he talks about it with such conviction and care and wants to make sure that alec understands exactly how it works beyond just decorating what is the correct texture for what and maia is just making heart eyes at him the whole time. she came here to be amused but seeing her boyfriend like that really makes her melt. ugh i love them

also every once in a while alec will say something Painfully Shadowhunter-y and raphael will just stare right at maia with the deadest-looking eyes you’ve ever seen in your life, and she almost spits into her own coffee at least once. sometimes she pats his shoulders all like “hang in there, bud”. but also like, he can’t fool her and she knows that he’s proud whenever alec gets it right, and he’s happy that he gets to do this for magnus, even if kind of second handedly. he knows that it will make magnus immensely happy if alec manages to make him a good meal, and like, he deserves it. plus, raphael just loves food and being able to share what he knows about it is always a joy. not that he won’t complain the whole time. but you know

okay so for next time, alec actually gets to cook for real! some good ole’ s o u p. and alec’s like “hmm. i mean i wanted to make something nice for magnus, you know?” and cue speech number 3: if you aren’t able to make a really good soup, you won’t be able to make anything else. it doesn’t matter how simple the dish is, what matters is to do it right, to make it with love, and to make it taste like home. soup is not just soup, it’s warmth, it’s love, it’s caring, it’s peace. i want you to prove to me that you can pour your whole heart into whatever you make magnus. there are no better or worse dishes, there are dishes more suited to one’s taste, or to an occasion. if magnus is upset, some nice, hot soup is going to soothe him way better than the most delicate pastry. so make me some soup, lover boy, and prove to me that no matter what it is, you can put your love for magnus and take care of him all the same

and alec is not one to back down from a challenge, so he sets his jaw and proceeds to cook like he is heading to battle, or in an episode of hannibal, or some shit. and inevitably he overthinks every single detail and it turns out weird and suboptimal, and raphael is like “i can taste your nervousness in this” and alec is like “nervousness is not a taste” and raphael is like “and yet”

speech number 4: you don’t have to think about it, you have to feel. if you’re thinking too much, you’re stuck in your own head, you’re not paying attention. food isn’t made with the mind, it is made with the senses. pay attention to the textures, tastes, sounds, colors. don’t be out there trying to think of what the most accurate combinations are, or something. just pay attention to what you’re doing

and alec’s like. “i’m too autistic for this humbo jumbo i don’t know how to cook through following my heart” and raphael, ready to smack him with a newspaper, is like “it’s not about following your heart, it’s about following your body, paying attention to what you feel. you are more likely to notice texture differences, tastes, sounds, brightness. use that” and alec’s like alright

anyway so alec makes some and it’s like, alright, not fantastic, but good. then for the third one raphael just goes “ok just think about magnus” and alec is like *vibrating* man i sure do love magnus and he’s practically secreting heart emojis through his pores and raphael is like uggghhhgghhhghghhghhhhhh g r o s s, texting maia about his woes and pain lmao. anyway you guessed it the soup turns out great cuz i’m a corny bitch. raphael is like maia. maia. the soup was so good. just because he was thinking about magnus. he’s actually worthy of my dad. uggghhhhh put a stake through my hEART and maia is just like. pat pat

okay so then they go to more technical shit like chopping techniques and temperatures and stuff like that you know the usual shit. and raphael teaches him some more recipes until he eventually decides that alec is good enough to learn something fancier to woo magnus with - idk what that would be tbh so like insert something here. and okay alec graduates cooking class woohooo

and then a few days later magnus goes visit raphael and he’s all like “so… alec cooked for me the other day” and raphael pauses and softens incredibly and is all like “did he now?” and magnus nods, clearly so happy it’s unbelievable, possibly a little in awe because he wasn’t expecting the sudden display, not when he knew that alec wasn’t exactly interested in culinary, much less for it to be so good. like obviously alec had put thought and work into this and it’s just… really nice. and he felt just so cherished and loved and i just aaaaaaaa

obviously he tries to keep the lovey-dovey shit to a minimum, if anything because raphael already teases him enough (he’s still not over “because you’re totally unbiased”), but it’s just so obvious that he’s happy and he can barely hide a smile behind his tea and whatever raphael made for him (pan dulce maybe?) and he looks almost giddy, and that’s enough for raphael to feel accomplished. and he asks what alec made for him and magnus goes “soto ayam” and raphael’s eyes widen in shock and he smiles to himself like “the bastard”, because in the end alec made magnus soup, soup from magnus’ culture, because he understood perfectly exactly what raphael meant with food being love and care, and i just aaaaaaaaaaa

and don’t get me wrong he’ll make magnus fancy dinners too eventually, with roses and wine and the whole shebang, but he specifically chose soto ayam to be the first because he just loves magnus and wanted that to show through his food before anything else and i just doadsiahdaih im a soft bitch the end

#malec #alec lightwood #raphael santiago #shadowhunters #sh #maiaphael #maia roberts #malec ficlet #kinda idk #magnus bane #brotp: i'll do whatever it takes to protect them #ask #pastaingallday #autistic alec lightwood #autistic raphael santiago

[faejilly]

wip meme :) can i ask about SH "i do" the infamous arranged marriage au, "wing!fic" cause **yeet**, and "rubbish heap" amnesia <3 <3 <3

anyone can always ask about ALL THE THINGS. Not sure I know what you want from them, though, so feel free to poke at me again if this isn’t it.

The infamous arranged marriage au was originally a twitter thread: here

I started it for a Big Bang and realized it was going to be too long to get done in the time frame, and have revisited it multiple times since then, but I keep rushing, I think, because I don’t usually write long fic, and to be done properly this one needs a very slow burn, which isn’t something I usually write either, and trying to slow down and linger in it is apparently not in my usual skillset.

They need that initial spark when they meet, that’s so intrinsic to their relationship, I think, but then they both pull back (for good in universe reasons) and I keep not pulling back hard enough, I think, and then I’ve lost all my conflict and it’s very dull.

But that first oh no he’s hot is still delightful.

Finally they were let inside, and led to a conference room. Their escorts waved them in without entering the room themselves, and Magnus heard them start to walk back down the hallway to whatever it was Shadowhunters did when they weren't lording themselves over anyone else forced to exist in their presence, when he heard the footsteps stutter to a halt.

"Where do you think you're going?" The voice from the hallway was low, but sharp enough to carry into the conference room. Magnus rolled his eyes. Apparently they weren't supposed to be left alone, not even here, in the front wing of the Institute, which was as public as anything in the Shadow World ever got. He couldn't quite catch the guards' responses, some annoyed sounding mutter that got cut off by that same low voice, though it was somehow even sharper the second time. "Ashkeep. Kitchens. Refreshments. Proper ones, you know very well what they're supposed to get. Don't linger."

Magnus froze, his eye-roll interrupted half-way through.

"Wellstone." The voice continued, clearly annoyed at the guards, not the Downworlders that waited just out of sight. Magnus wondered if said voice knew that they could hear him. "Go to the library for the marriage portfolios, like you should have at the beginning of your shift when you got the assignment. And both of you, stop wasting our guests' time."

Magnus shared a glance with Kalyani, who looked even more startled than Magnus felt. The unknown Shadowhunter had just called them guests, with the implied corollary that he expected his fellow Nephilim to be good hosts. Or, well. He'd been in the hallway to re-direct the guards, he probably didn't expect the Nephilim to be good hosts, but he had the clout to make them behave better despite themselves? Or something? Magnus couldn't resist a quick shrug with raised eyebrows at Lorenzo, who shifted a little in his chair, clearly trying to appear less startled than Magnus or Kalyani, but not doing a very good job of it.

"My apologies," the voice had reached their doorway, and the unknown Shadowhunter stepped inside with a polite nod. 

Magnus' brain stuttered to a halt. 

He blinked, wondered if maybe he was hallucinating. Nothing changed. He was still staring at Mr. Improbably Tall, Dark, and Handsome, the young man standing in front of them at something approximating parade rest. The graceful line of his shoulders was set off by the dark black lines of the rune on his neck, and he was even almost smiling, the apology in his words echoed by the expression on his face. 

Or he was until he met Magnus' eyes, and for half-a-breath he seemed to stutter to a halt, too.

SEE? They’re so fun.

Anyways.

So the wing!fic is a weird hodgepodge of Serious Politics and Alec’s Wings Like Magnus And Refuse To Behave Normally. I feel both points are underscored by this running mental commentary of Alec thinking about all the stuff he won’t admit out loud. Which is a salty joke, he doesn’t want people to know he maybe doesn’t hate them! But also, he’s never admitting his feelings out loud and then I’m sad.

Magnus is flirting with him and he doesn't know what to do with that. He knows even less what he's supposed to do when their hands touch before the ritual and his wings curl, want to wrap around Magnus' body the same way their fingers are pressed together, wants more in a way he's never let himself before.

And then it all goes to shit and he almost gets Jace killed and everyone knows, and his wings are tucked so tightly closed they ache, and he’s never ever taking the glamour off again.

&

Magnus calls and asks him for a drink and he says yes without a thought, and his wings snap open and flap, once, hard enough he can practically feel the breeze even through his glamour.

And then he has to say no, and he feels them droop in disappointment, and it takes more concentration than he’ll ever admit to make himself lift them up so it doesn’t feel like they’re dragging on the ground as he goes after Clary.

&

He finds a perch with a relatively clear line of sight, and uses his runes to listen for the familiar lilt of Clary's voice. (She's arguing. With the Alpha. God, she's an idiot. He hates that he kind of likes her nerve, though. Not that he's ever going to admit that out loud.)

&

Simon's stuffed in a locker room in the back, and actually quite easy to rescue. And even cooperative about it, listening while Alec tells him how he's going to get him out, minus a surprisingly short holy fuck are those wings? tangent, which is a nice change from everyone else in his life lately. (Except Magnus.) He definitely likes the mundane better than Jace or Izzy at the moment. Not that he's telling Simon that, ever.

AND IT DOESN’T GET BETTER. ON EITHER COUNT.

But I’m not quite sure how terrible it’s going to get, and if I let it get as terrible as I think it should, I’m not sure how I’ll pull it back out again, and I 💯 believe in happy endings after that sort of angst, so. It’s lingering in stasis for now.

RUBBISH HEAP

Honestly, the amnesia’s the least terrible of the three things I crammed together, and I feel that that maybe says things about me I don’t usually admit. :D But yes! Amnesia!Magnus!

Magnus flinched back, but he looked confused now, rather than angry. He looked like he was starting to realize this might be more than just a weird Shadowhunter with an awkward proposition.

"Catarina Loss." Alec managed an eternity later, after they'd been staring at each other long enough for his heart to start beating again. "We should call Cat."

"You know Catarina?" Magnus' posture eased, and Alec couldn't decide if that made things better or worse, if he should be relieved that Magnus still remembered her, or if it hurt even more because whatever was wrong appeared to just be about Alec himself. Again. 

Alec closed his eyes and swallowed. It took another breath before he could nod. You introduced us. He didn't think it would help to say that out loud. Instead he fumbled out his phone and scrolled to her number, dropping his phone with an uneven thud on the table after he hit the speaker button.

"Alec?" Cat's voice came through after only two rings, and Alec shuddered with relief. "It's the middle of my shift, can this wait?"

"Cat." Alec stopped, completely unable to think of what to say next that wouldn't just turn into a wail or a scream. Apparently he sounded broken enough he didn't need to, because he could hear her inhale, loud and ragged. 

"Are you ok? Is Magnus—"

"You know this Shadowhunter?" Magnus interrupted.

The noise Cat made was remarkably similar to the one Alec had just done himself, which was oddly comforting. She figured out follow-up words faster than he had, though. "Where are you?"

#wip posting #writing memery #long post for ts #Anonymous #jilly answers

[ralfstrashcan]

ok but 5 least favourite sh characters 👀

Hahahaha dear anon, it’s like you’re reading my mind. When you asked about my five favorite characters (I’m just gonna go ahead and assume these asks are all from the same person) I did think about who my five least favorite characters are as well, so I’m actually prepared this time! :D

1. Raziel. The most pointless, annoying character I’ve ever encountered. “It’s not the wish of heaven to erase all demon blooded creatures but since I made a binding pinky promise a millennium ago to do any idiot’s bidding who summons me at midnight over a stupid lake when the moon is in the seventh house I’ll still go ahead and do it. I mean it’s genocide but what can you do if someone asks nicely, amiright? Oh wait, what is that? There’s a battle going on at the shores of the stupid lake. Seems like someone wants to stop that genocide. Should I get involved?? Hmmmmmm no, I’m just gonna keep flapping in the background like the useless prop I am and dim the lights a bit for more dramatic wrestling in the half-dark.”I can’t even.

2. Helen Blackthorn. Oh, how I hate her. She’s the perfect example of moral stupidity where an action is right and good as long as she does it to others but becomes outrageous and wrong as soon as someone attempts to do the same to her. And on top of that she’s framed as a courageous heroine by the show with literally no one calling her out on her bullshit and self-absorbed behavior.(A more detailed explanation can be found in my 3x17 reaction post, just ctrl+f “sob story”)

3. Max Lightwood. UGH. Nothing drives me up the wall like spoiled and entitled kids who think they’re always the smartest person in the room. He’s insolent but everyone around him accepts it without rebuke (except Jace that one time in 2x08, that’s why I love you Jace, stick it to the little devil!)Max thinks he’s oh so grown-up and knows better than anyone else, and while he has his moments like figuring out then-Sebastian’s real identity he’s also dumb enough to flat out confront him without a plan or calling backup first. Smh.(I was so hyped in 3B when Jonathan attacked the Institute Max was staying at only to be devastatingly disappointed when he didn’t finish the job he started back in 2B. I wanted to dance on Max’s grave, dammit.)

4. Raj. He honestly doesn’t have a single redeeming quality. He’s racist, he’s a coward, he makes tasteless jokes over the corpse of a fellow Shadowhunter, he wants to kick Magnus out of the Institute when he’s the only thing keeping Alec, also a fellow Shadowhunter, alive.The only moment Raj had where I didn’t completely despise him was when he went behind Alec’s back in 3x02 and logged him out of the system. Going against orders because you believe you’re protecting your comrades from a reckless, irrational decision your leader made is a motivation I can appreciate.

5. Madzie. Yes, before you start wondering, I have rarely met a child character I didn’t hate. I still have nightmares from that Orphan Black brat. Give a character scenes that scream “I’m the cute kid/sidekick!” and have everyone else fawn over them and it’s 80% sure I’ll hate them.Anyway, Madzie. One thing that annoys me about her is that she’s very obviously a cute accessory for Malec. Remember that ice cream flashback? As soon as she served her purpose she just, vanishes from the scene.The other thing that annoys me about her is that whole thing with Iris. They had a good relationship where Iris took care of her and (very likely) kept Madzie in the dark about the gory details of how she came to be. Valentine uses Iris as leverage to get Madzie to cooperate and that works. But later in 3x11 when Iris wants to take her back Madzie protests loudly and it doesn’t make sense. They didn’t even tell Madzie about Magnus’s magic loss, am I supposed to believe they told her what the heck sick shit Iris was up to? Probably not, if they didn’t want to traumatize her further. Even if they told her that Iris is evil and has to rot in prison I find it hard to believe that Madzie would immediately joing Team Anti Iris.So yeah, Madzie is nothing but an accessory kid and a plot device, and I don’t have the patience for either.

#shadowhunters #raziel #helen blackthorn #max lightwood #raj #madzie #personal i guess

[humansunshineao3]

Parabatai Fix-It 1x08

What the parabatai bond could have been if the writers weren’t incompetent.

Read on AO3 here

~~~~~~~~~~

It was an unpopular feeling among his fellow shadowhunters, but Alec sort of liked doing paperwork. Being in the midst of the action was fine, but there was nothing like the sense of accomplishment when your ‘in’ pile got halved in just a few hours. Alec was on a roll. He’d even run out of ink in his pen and had to pick a new one. All in all, he was having a pretty good afternoon, considering the fact that there was a Clave Envoy skulking around somewhere.

“Alec!” Jace didn’t knock before coming in, his eyes alight with excitement. “It’s your lucky day!”

“Has Clary decided to behave herself?” Alec asked drily, which made Jade scoff.

“No, of course not, don’t be silly. No, Magnus is on his way! Lydia sent for him to check out this weird forsaken with Izzy.” Jace explained.

Alec narrowed his eyes as he looked up at his brother. “And…?”

“And?!” Jace sighed, wondering where his brother got his denseness from, “this is your chance to ask him out!”

Alec actually laughed. “That’s funny. I have paperwork to do.”

“Come on, I know you wanna jump his magical bones.”

“Please never say that again.”

“He wants to jump yours too, it’s obvious.”

“When did you start picking up on homoerotic tension?” Alec asked, arching his eyebrow.

“Hey, trust me,” Jace said sagely, “I have been hit on by more than a few guys in my time. I know when a dude is into it.”

“Name one guy who hit on you.” Alec dared.

“Simon,” Jace shrugged, “guarantee you the dude’s jerked it thinking about a threesome with me and Clary.”

Alec blanched. “I could have gone my whole life without that mental image.”

“Sorry,” Jace grinned, nudging Alec. “Come on, take off your shirt.”

“What?! Why?!”

“Because you have a good body, and Magnus is gay.”

“Bisexual,” Alec corrected him, and Jace rolled his eyes.

“Alright, bisexual. Point is, he sees your abs, he’s putty in your hands.” Jace shrugged. “Go to those punch bags close to the door in the training room, get your shirt off and get all sweaty and shit, and then I’ll tell Izzy to tell Magnus to deliver his findings to you, and then bam! You’re on a one way train to bone town.” He let out one of those devious little chuckles that he did when something terrible or embarrassing was about to happen, and Alec gaped at him.

“Are you seriously suggesting that I disrupt the chain of command and go over Lydia’s head just to hit on Magnus?”

“It’s the Lightwood way,” Jace reminded him, and Alec scrubbed his hand down his face. “You’re carrying on the tradition! Izzy put her fingers up to the Clave by messing around with Meliorn, I made out with Valentine’s daughter in the ops centre and now you’re gonna get busy with the High Warlock in a time of crisis! Go big or go home, Alec.”

“You really think Magnus will be into it?” Alec asked with trepidation.

“Dude! Yes! Girls and gays can’t resist abs, okay, it’s science.”

“You’re not supposed to call gays gays, you’re straight.” Alec pointed out.

“Girls and guys who are into guys didn’t sound so snappy,” Jace admitted, shaking his head. “Stop distracting me! Go shove your abs in Magnus’ face!”

Alec got up from his chair, his hands in a surrendering position. “Fine! Fine! Jesus Christ! Fine! I’m going!”

Jace nodded, and squeezed his shoulders, making an excited noise. “That’s my boy! Go get that magic dick!”

Alec snorted out a laugh, letting Jace steer him towards the training room. “I’m not a child, I know what I’m doing.”

“Oh, do you?” Jace asked skeptically, “then what’s your plan of action?”

“I don’t think flirting is something you need a plan for.”

“For a novice like you? Of course you need a plan!” Jace nudged him, pointing to his shirt. “I know you, you clam up if you go somewhere dangerous without knowing what the plan is.”

Alec rolled his eyes. “I wouldn’t count talking to Magnus as a dangerous place.” He lifted his shirt up and over his head.

“Are you kidding? I’d take a hundred shax demons over asking out someone I liked any day.”

“Yes, but you have intimacy issues,” Alec reminded him, and Jace pretended to upper cut Alec in the abs. “Why are you so focussed on me? Shouldn’t you be squinting and pouting at Clary?”

“Haha, very funny,” Jace deadpanned, shrugging off his own hoodie and snatching Alec’s shirt out of his hands. “So here’s our play…”

Alec sighed, wondering how he’d ever thought Jace would be anything less than annoyingly invested in his love life. “Magnus is a person, not a football.”

“Do you want my advice or not?” Jace asked, putting his hands on his hips.

“I guess I do,” Alec groaned, looking at the hoodie in his hands. “What’s this for?”

Jace held up his hands. “Okay, this is what you’re gonna do. You’re gonna be working out, and then Magnus will come in and be like ‘here’s the report Alexander, oh, what lovely abs you have’.”

“Okay, first of all, Magnus’ voice is deeper than yours. Secondly, he’s like a million years old, I doubt he’s going to be impressed by my abs.”

“I thought you’d say that, which is why I did some research,” Jace said wisely, “it turns out that guys who are tall and have hairy chests and abs are pretty much the ideal in the gay community. You would be classed as an-”

“If the word bear comes out of your mouth I’m killing myself.”

“What?!” Jace spluttered. “No, no, don’t be silly.”

Alec sighed in relief.

“You’re not big enough to be a bear.”

“Oh my God-”

“Okay, okay, back to the plan!” Jace said hurriedly. “So you act all coy and sexy and be like ‘oh, these abs? Let me just cover myself, how embarrassing.’”

“I definitely don’t sound like that.” Alec smirked, unable to keep from laughing at his ridiculous brother.

“Just go with it, Jesus! So that’s when you put on the hoodie.”

“Why can’t I just put on a shirt?” Alec asked.

Jace facepalmed. “Because, Alec, with a hoodie, you can zip it up a little to pretend to be modest, but then actually end up framing your titties. It looks hot, try it, go on.”

Alec was skeptical, but he did as Jace said, zipping the hoodie halfway. “Like this?”

“Nah, little lower.”

“This?” Alec pulled the zipper down an inch. Jace stepped back and tilted his head to the side.

“Yeah, yeah, that’s it. Exactly like that.” He surveyed Alec with a approving eye. “Fuck yeah, he’s not gonna know what hit him.” Jace pulled out his phone. “Now all I gotta do is get Izzy to tell him where you are…” His thumbs flew across his phone, a grin growing on his face. “She already told him. He’s on his way.”

“He is?”

Jace nodded. “Yeah, and apparently he made a little innuendo about wanting to get his hands on you,” he wiggled his eyebrows, and Alec scoffed.

“You’re disgusting.” Alec shooed him away. “No go, before he sees you coaching me.”

“Don’t forget to take off the hoodie!” Jace insisted as he backed towards the door. “And don’t forget to tense!”

#alec lightwood #jace herondale #jace lightwood #parabatai #shadowhunters fanfic #good to reblog #pre-malec #canon verse #writing

[professional-anti]

Chapter Eleven: Magnus Bane

Okay, kiddos. Let’s go.

Jace and Clary leave the Brotherhood HQ, and Jace calls the cab driver a “brain-dead moron”. You know what, here’s the full quote:

Jace leaned forward and banged his hand against the partition separating them from the cab driver. “Turn left! Left! I said to take Broadway, you brain-dead moron!”

Oh, man, I’m so hot for Jace you guys. He’s so evil and cruel. I’m fanning myself. And the reason he wants to take Broadway? He wants breakfast. That’s it. It’s not a life-or-death situation. He wants fucking breakfast.

I like the idea of the diner they go to. A place where magical ppl can get together for some spaghetti. I don’t know if I’ve mentioned this, but I LOVE the idea of a secret (or not-so-secret) magical Manhattan. It’s just so unfortunate that Clare’s is so bad.

Clarinet asks Jack-Jack about Magnus Bane. Jack-Jack explains that he’s a warlock. Alec shows up. Clare is the foreshadowing master.

Clary freaks out about a guy in front of the store who looks like a demon. Clary. Girl. Come on. You know about this stuff already. It’s been like two days. Calm down. Apparently he’s a bouncer (for a diner) and is the warlock equivalent of a squib.

Honesty, I love this diner. They have blood on tap!!!! That’s so cool!!!!!! Plus, the people eating there sound way more interesting than our MCs.

[A] boy with spiky blue dreads was sitting next to a beautiful Indian girl with long black hair and gauzelike golden wings sprouting from her back.

Gotta love how the only people of color are basically set-dressing, though. At least Simon is Jewish, even with the messed up antisemitic crosses-burned-into-him dream thing. Clare’s Jewish, though, so of course she represents only herself and leaves everyone else out in the cold.

Alec shows up:

There was a kinetic, almost feverish energy to [Alec] that hadn’t been there before. Something about Jace sharpened him, brought him into focus. If she were going to draw them together, she thought, she would make Jace a little blurry, while Alec stood out, all sharp, clear planes and angles.

Oh, here it is. The “poor gay boy only comes to life in front of hopelessly straight crush” trope. Bc Alec has nothing better to do than obsess over Jace, a boy who is currently being rude to the waitress. Does Clare honestly not know how annoying rude boys are?

Isabelle and Simon show up. Apparently, even Isabelle’s perfume is evil:

Isabelle’s hair tickled [Clary’s] face, smelling of some kind of vanilla perfume. Clary fought the urge to sneeze. She hated vanilla perfume. She’d never understood why some girls felt the need to smell like dessert.

Haven’t I mentioned? Clary is the best girl to ever girl. Isabelle can’t even order right. Instead of getting something reasonable, like a large order of coconut pancakes (gross, Clary), “Isabelle fastidiously order[s] a fruit smoothie”.

Jace goes off to flirt with the waitress. Clary is confused bc the waitress is a Downworlder and aren’t they, like, totally evil? Isabelle and Alec assure her that the only kill the bad Downworlders. The rest they let live.

“Like letting spiders live because they eat mosquitoes, Clary thought.” Uh, not really. The Downworlders aren’t spiders. They’re just people, living their lives.

“So they’re good enough to let live, good enough to let live, good enough to make your food for you, good enough to flirt with—but not really good enough? I mean, not as good as people.” Isabelle and Alec looked at her as if she were speaking Urdu. “Different from people,” said Alec finally.

This doesn’t really seem like such a difficult question? Isabelle and Alec are just trying to cover up their bullshit.

“Better than mundanes?” said Simon. “No,” Isabelle said decidedly. “You could turn a mundane into a Shadowhunter. But you could never turn a Downworlder into one of the Clave. They can’t withstand the runes.”

So Shadowhunters judge others based on their ability to become Shadowhunters? Seems not at all racist. I’m so glad we had this chat. Jace comes back and explains that there’s just a shit-ton of hostility between Shadowhunters and Downworlders, so it’s not really racism.

Miracle of miracles, Isabelle reveals that Magnus Bane has invited the magical community of New York to his house for a party. God, I love parties.

There’s a whole day before the party, so Simon and Isabelle decide to go for a walk in Central Park. For some reason, this makes Clary feel a “murderous rage”. These emotions are seriously not healthy.

Back at the Institute, Clary goes exploring in the library and finds a photo of her mom and other Order of the Pheonix members-cum-Deatheaters Shadowhunters. Evil Giles shows up and points out Valentine, Luke, the Lightwoods, Jace’s mom, and himself in the picture. Clary mentions that Jace doesn’t look anything like his father. What could this possibly mean?

Honestly, the concept of a book about the children of villains isn’t terrible. It really just the complete ripping-off of Harry Potter that annoys me.

Oh, God. Clary gets back to her room (armed with a sleeping potion from Hodge) to see Jace looking at her sketchbook. I’m not even good at drawing, and my sketchbooks are still deeply personal. You can’t just look in someone’s sketchbook! It’s like a diary! WTF, Jace!

In fact, Clary tells Jace that it’s  basically a diary and that he shouldn’t look at it. This should be obvious.

Wait, I’m laughing:

“You could try not being charming all the time,” Clary said. “It might be a relief for everyone.”

BITCH, WHERE???

Jace offers to tell Clary a bedtime story. It’s the famous falcon story, the one that Clare used in her Harry Potter fanfiction. You know, where Jace’s father gives him a falcon to train, and when Jace loves it, his father kills it. Proof that Jace is Draco.

Somehow, Clary makes the connection that this story is about Jace only as she falls asleep. Whatever.

Isabelle wakes up Clary. Again, a famous moment:

[Isabelle] looked like a moon goddess. Clary hated her.

Bitch, Isabelle is a moon goddess, and I love her.

Yes, we have a makeover scene!! My secret weakness. I’m sorry, fellow patriarchy fighters. Makeover scenes are just so good.

Isabelle continues to be the coolest person in this book:

Her room looked as if a disco ball had exploded inside it. The walls were black and shimmered with swirls of sponged-on golden paint. Clothes were strewn everywhere: on chairs, spilling out of the closet and the tall wardrobe propped against one wall. Her vanity table, its mirror rimmed with spangled pink fur, was covered in glitter, sequins, and pots of blush and powder.

I want this room!

Clary gets a slinky black dress, fishnets, and boots. I want this outfit, too. When Isabelle does Clary’s makeup, Clary asks if Alec is gay. For some reason, this causes an intense shock in Isabelle:

Isabelle’s wrist jerked. The eyeliner skidded, inking a long line of black from the corner of Clary’s eye to her hairline. “Oh, hell,” Isabelle said, putting the pen down. “It’s all right,” Clary began, putting her hand up to her eye. “No, it isn’t.” Isabelle sounded near tears as she scrabbled around among the piles of junk on top of the vanity . . . She sat down on the edge of the bed, ankle bracelets jingling, and looked at Clary through her hair. “How did you guess?” she said finally. “I—” “You absolutely can’t tell anyone,” said Isabelle. “Not even  Jace?” “Especially not Jace!” “All right.” Clary heard the stiffness in her own voice. “I guess I didn’t realize it was such a  big deal.” “It would be to my parents,” said Isabelle quietly. “They would disown him and throw him out of the Clave—” “What, you can’t be gay and a Shadowhunter?” “There’s no official rule about it, But people don’t like it. I mean, less with people our age—I think,” she added, uncertainly, and Clary remembered how few other people her age Isabelle had ever really met. “But the older generation, no. If it happens, you don’t talk about it.”

Okay. So. I’m trying to judge this for when it was written. But, like. Is the homophobia necessary? It’s kind of like the ridiculous sexism in ACOTA/R. It’s a choice the author is making, for, like, no good reason. This is a case of a straight author needlessly torturing her gay character. But since this was published in 2007, I feel like this has been talked out, so let’s move on.

IT TURNS OUT THAT ISABELLE’S ANKLETS ARE WEAPONS. I LOVE HER. WE ARE GETTING MARRIED. WEDDING INVITATIONS TO FOLLOW.

Ugh, Simon short-circuits bc Clary is wearing a short skirt. Please calm down, sweetie. You’re embarrassing me. Wait, what is even going on here? Jace gives Clary a dagger, and, uh, this happens:

“I could give you a thigh sheath to put that in,” Isabelle offered. “I’ve got tons.” “ABSOLUTELY NOT,” said Simon.

I’m actually laughing. Lol for real. What does this even mean? Is a thigh sheath too sexy or something? Simon, can you chill for .2 seconds? This isn’t your body. Let’s all take deep breaths.

Clary puts the dagger in the outside pocket of her backpack because there’s no way having to unzip a backpack to get to the dagger could bit her in the ass during a fight. Then Jace reaches over and undoes her hair bc, uh, shipping moment.

I’m so grossed out by the fact that in a short while, they will think they’re siblings.

#anti cassandra clare #anti the mortal instruments #book snark #CoB: Chapter 11 #CoB snark

[madroxed]

call my truth [shadowhunters. ~3k wip. pre-simon/raphael.]

simon should see it coming. [a post season one unfinished wip.]

a/n: HI, THIS IS AMNESTY FIC. it’s been sat in my docs folder for about two years now, and needless to say it’s not getting finished at this point. but, hey, it’s about 3k and the same as at least two other fics i’ve written (i had a lot of specific needs coming out of s1), and i figured i’d just stick what i had on my blog. i swear i’m trying to write new saphael fic, but, uh, yeah. until then have something that hasn’t been relevant in two seasons?

+

Simon should see it coming.

He’s spent enough time with the Clave now to know how they work, how they spin endless tales about ���protection’ and ‘destiny’ and ‘sacred rights’ but look at Downworlders — at him — like they’re little more than an annoyance, a bug to swat or a child to scold, and that’s on their better days. Clary doesn’t notice it, can’t see the ugly truths behind the shiny new world that makes all those years of feeling different seem validated, and Simon wants to tell her that everyone feels like that, the mundanes, and the werwolves and vampires before the bite takes away any control they may have had over their own destinies, but she’s his best friend and he loves her even if he doesn’t always like her nowadays.

He knows it’s not fair to blame her, not for him Turning and not for him being here now, trapped in some farce of a deal with the Shadowhunters so they can parade him around as living proof of alliance instead of with the people who’s harsh words and sarcastic jibes had glossed over the reality of the home they were offering.

In the end, Simon chose Clary. He always chose Clary, and in hindsight he can see all the small crevices of his mistakes cracking into the crater he’s made for himself, but they’re his to live with.

(He still resents it, resents Clary, on the days when he’s patronized and insulted and looked at like a second class citizen as Clary laughs with Isabelle and doesn’t notice the way the world’s shifting towards something darker. Her mission to save her mom was true and just and the origin story of every kind of superhero, but he doesn’t think she realizes even now the wheels she put into motion with her casual arrogance and each seemingly harmless act of hypocrisy. Doesn’t think she sees the destruction she brought about in the name of ‘peace’ and the parts they all ended up playing in her name.

Simon made his choice because it was the familiar one, and he wonders how Clary would react if she knew he’d change it all given half a chance.)

Simon should see it coming in the way he’s slowly being shut out, in the way even Isabelle and Alec have stopped sharing as much. He should see it in Magnus’ frown, like he notices the change too, and the hushed conversations he and Alec share in corners that leave Magnus more frustrated than he arrived.

Simon should see it coming but he doesn’t.

+

He’s at Luke’s when he finds out, chilling on the couch and laughing at Alaric’s list of complaints about training the newer wolves. It’s a break in his routine, and the pack may still be getting used to having a vampire voluntarily in their mix, but it’s still a thousand times better than being at the Institute, stuck in the antechamber waiting to be scowled at and sent off like the good little errand boy he’s apparently become.

“Shit,” Luke says, cutting Alaric off mid sentence and staring down at his phone. Luke doesn’t swear all that often, and it takes Simon by surprise for long enough that he doesn’t notice the look Luke and Alaric share.

“Who?” Alaric asks, and it’s only then Simon recognizes the seriousness of the situation.

Luke opens his mouth and shuts it again, his eyes darting to Simon, and Simon feels suddenly sick.

“What’s happened?” he asks. “Luke, what’s happened?”

“It’s not Clary,” Luke says, and it hits Simon how much has changed when he’s surprised that’s Luke’s first point of call. He hadn’t thought for a moment it would be Clary, and even if he had, Luke wouldn’t still be sitting here looking like the doctor delivering bad news to a patient’s family if it were.

“Who?” Simon asks, echoing Alaric and hearing the broken bite in his own voice.

“I don’t know the details,” Luke says, and there’s a dark shadow across his eyes that suggests he’ll be finding out soon enough, “but apparently there was a fight. Some of Valentine’s goons. I guess the Clave must have called in some of the clan…?”

Simon’s out of the room before he’s finished the last word, using speed to distract him from the pounding in his head and the tightness of his throat. He has no idea where he’s going, thinks about the Hotel for a split-second before changing direction and blurring by the streets leading to Magnus’. Even if it’s not the right place, Magnus will have answers or help or both, and Simon thinks how strange it is that he trusts a Warlock who barely tolerates him more than anyone else right now.

(He knows why, of course he knows why, but it doesn’t make it any less weird.)

The door opens before he reaches it, magic that says everything Simon needs to know, and he stops only when he’s next to the bed, Magnus’ eyes filled with something that borderlines grief and the sharp smell of lightning on the air.

Raphael’s so still.

“It’s magic,” Magnus says against the silence. “It’s magic, but I can’t place it, I can’t— It’s something Valentine’s concocted, a weapon, I don’t know, and damn whichever warlocks are helping him to the seventh circle of hell.”

“How did you—?” Simon asks, choking on the words, and Magnus shakes his head.

“I didn’t, not in time. I knew something was going on, everyone was being so sketchy, but it wasn’t until—” He cuts off, running fingers through his hair and looking on the verge of collapse himself. “I felt it. Raphael’s family, and I felt it.”

“He’s alive though,” Simon says, but it comes out more of a question.

“For now,” Magnus says, “but the others…”

Simon’s never been so glad he doesn’t need to breathe.

“No,” he says, shaking his head roughly. “No.”

“Not everyone,” Magnus says. “A lot of the clan have already gone back to Camille out of fear. She’s still technically the leader, after all.”

“But those loyal to Raphael…” Simon says as names and faces flash across his eyelids. “Fuck.”

Magnus reaches shaking fingers out to the stockpile of potions he’s dumped in the corner. “The Clave have a lot to answer for.” Simon blinks, and Magnus gives him a pitying look that could just as easily be directed at himself. “They weren’t on the front lines. Coincidentally, the Shadowhunters were all stood just far enough back not to be hit.”

Simon clenches his jaw and wonders if every day of his afterlife is destined to be a new study in betrayal.

+

Clary eyes him warily when he arrives at the battle site, an arsenal of weapons and fellow Shadowhunters around her, and Simon hopes she didn’t know and hates that he can’t be sure.

It’s chaos, the signs of the dead and injured etched against the very ground, and Simon wants to rip the streets apart at the seams. The Shadowhunter wounded are being treated on the sidelines, but the real damage is further forward, trapped against a spill of spellwork that shouldn’t exist and the smell of it alone makes Simon want to throw up.

A faint moan catches his attention, and he’s moving before he can think about how dangerous the air could still be, flinging rocks away and pulling the broken body free.

“Lily,” he says, wiping away the blood and only just recognizing her through the bruises that are too slow to heal.

“Raphael?” she says, love and loyalty and pain threaded through.

“He’s alive,” Simon says, and she relaxes a little, lets him carry her back to safety. “He’s bad, but he’s alive. Magnus has him.”

“The others?” she asks, and Simon shakes his head and bites back tears Lily can’t, holding her to him as her body wracks with sobs. They’ve never been close, barely exchanged a handful of words when he was still living at the Hotel and most of those were about the stacks of paperwork Raphael pretended were part of Simon’s official duties, but that doesn’t matter now.

“I’m sorry,” Simon says, and means it about so much more. “I’m so sorry.”

He calls Luke who’s almost there anyway, and Luke has Alaric take Lily gently from Simon’s arms and to Magnus. The look in Luke’s eyes in pure fury, and Simon nods and hopes he knows he feels it too.

“You should go to your pack,” Simon says, and Luke blinks at him in surprise. “I’ll find out what I can, but you shouldn’t be here. Not if— You shouldn’t be here.”

“Simon,” Luke says, ever the protector and the cop and the father figure they all desperately needed.

“It’s okay, Luke,” Simon says, and hopes Luke understands. The darkness is here, it’s real, and they’ve all been prepared for war in the most arbitrary of ways but now it’s coming from sides they weren’t expecting and if the werewolves have enough of a head start to keep safe then they need to take it.

“Call me later,” Luke says, and Simon reaches out to bump his fist, something normal and childish and necessary.

“If you can get a message to Meliorn…” Simon says, and Luke nods and looks as worried and resigned as Simon feels.

+

Someone’s saying, “We now have more information about the weapon that Valentine’s building…” but Simon can barely hear it through the buzzing in his ears. They all look so calm, like this was just a science experiment, and Simon thinks about every history lesson he’s ever sat through with a new understanding.

“But the vampire clan,” someone else says, Isabelle, sounding shocked and confused and that’s better, that’s something. “They’ll react, they’ll—”

“Ah,” the first person says, and of course it’s some ordinary white man, trying so hard not to look smug with his own importance. Simon wants to rip his throat out. “It was actually the clan leader, Camille Belcourt’s, suggestion we use this particular group as reinforcements…”

“Camille?” Simon says, and he’s sure he’s barely managing to force the words from his lips but everyone goes silent and turns to him anyway. “The same Camille responsible for the bloodbath around the city? The one who Turns unwilling victims and doesn’t care if they live or die? The one who couldn’t give a flying fuck about your Accords?”

“Simon,” Clary says, hand at his elbow. “You signed the disclaimer. It’s legally binding…”

He pulls out of her reach, turning eyes he’s sure are nothing but black on her and wondering if this is about Jace and the new mission she’s put upon her own shoulders or if the lure of power and importance have grabbed at her too.

“I signed that for you,” he says. “I signed that for your crusade, and now you can’t even see…Do you get it, Clary? Your Shadowhunters, the protectors of the Shadow World, just massacred a dozen people as an experiment.” He turns back to the group as a whole and doesn’t miss the way hands are clenched around weapons. “How long have you been planning this? Months at least. Did it matter which group of Downworlders you used or were you just waiting to see which would involve the least backlash? I suppose the seelies were more on guard after you tried to take Meliorn last time, and the pack’s too strong right now for you to risk it. Clary’s — our — coup against Raphael must have worked out perfectly for you; the clan were already fragile after they rebelled, and Raphael was managing to keep things together by a thread, and then we set Camille loose and it would have been so easy for you to offer to turn a blind eye if she just did this one thing for you…”

He can see Alec watching him with horrified eyes and knows he finally gets it, understands that it’s through chance alone it’s not Magnus and friends buried under rubble.

“It’s the Downworlders duty…” a voice proclaims, and Simon feels hysterical laughter bubbling beneath the surface.

“No,” he says, strong and clear and finite. “It’s not. You can fight this war however you want but if you think any of us will lift a hand to help you again then you’re crazy.”

“This is about survival,” the man says, and Simon nods.

“You’re right, it is. And as of right now every Downworlder knows that it’s not just Valentine they’re having to survive.”

+

“I heard you gave quite the speech,” Magnus says when Simon gets back, and Simon collapses into the chair that appears next to Raphael’s bed and groans into his hands.

“I wanted to kill them all,” he says honestly, and Magnus just nods and doesn’t look like he judges him at all for the compulsion.

“Lily’s recovering. I think the rubble must have taken most of the magical hit so it’s just taking her a little longer to heal.”

“Good,” Simon says. “Great. And Raphael?”

“The same,” Magnus says, magicking up a chair of his own with an exhausted sigh. “I’ve called in a second opinion, but Caterina isn’t always the speediest at picking up her messages.”

“You know what this means, don’t you?” Simon says, because he needs to be sure he’s not alone, and Magnus looks at him sadly.

“Of course I do,” Magnus says, and Simon doesn’t need him to say I’ve lived through it before to hear it.

“This is my fault,” Simon says, because it’s been bubbling inside him for days, for weeks, for months. “I did this.”

“No,” Magnus says. “I’m not saying your choices were brilliant, but this isn’t your fault. Everything about the Clave is built on a faulty power structure, and it doesn’t matter how many good people are part of it, there’s always the ones who let their bias and bigotry rule.”

“I don’t know what to do,” Simon admits, watching the way Raphael’s eyelashes cast shadows against his cheeks. “I’ve only been a part of this world for five seconds and I’m already responsible for the destruction of the vampires.”

“Sorry if it bruises your ego, but Camille was responsible for that long before you came along,” Magnus says, and then there’s a coffee mug of warm O-Neg in Simon’s hands.

“Thank you,” he says, and hopes Magnus knows he doesn’t just mean for the blood.

+

He falls asleep and wakes up hours later with an ache behind his eyes and voices in the next room.

Alec’s murmuring soft nothings, and Simon debates leaving before this becomes super awkward, but he comes around enough to notice another presence, and, oh.

Okay.

Already awkward then.

“Hi,” he says when he opens the door, and Clary stands up immediately, her teacup almost overbalancing.

“Hi,” she says. “Simon, I’m so—”

“Don’t,” he says, because he can’t right now. He knows she means it, knows she wouldn’t be here if she didn’t, but all he can hear are Raphael’s shallow, labored breaths and the buzzing in his own ears.

“What can we do?” Alec asks, hand curled around the curve of Magnus’ jaw but eyes sweeping unexpectedly across the room to include Simon.

Simon wants to say ’Nothing’, to let his anger push them away until it’s just him and Magnus and Lily in the apartment looking after Raphael, protecting him the way Simon hasn’t before and should have, should have. He stays quiet, though, and that’s good, that’s right, because Magnus doesn’t.

“Spellbooks,” Magnus says. “At the Institute. There’s some locked away somewhere, very old, very…dark.” He waves his hand and summons paper and pen from thin air. “I don’t know if they’ll help, but maybe…”

“We’ll find them as fast as we can,” Clary says earnestly, eyes still on Simon, and he nods and accepts it for what it is.

Alec presses a gentle kiss to Magnus’ lips; for all their dramatic wedding day shenanigans he’s not one for casual PDAs, so the silent ’I’m glad you’re safe’ isn’t hard to hear.

“Life’s too short…” Magnus says when they’re gone, and Simon frowns.

“Too short for what?”

“Oh,” Magnus says. “I don’t know. We’re practically immortal, life’s anything but short for us, but it seemed like the thing to say.”

Simon frowns. “I have every right to be furious.”

“You do,” Magnus says, seriously. “We all do. Maybe I’m just saying that sometimes the best thing we can do for our own sanity is to move on. Forgiveness or not. Self-responsibility or not. The past doesn’t always have to define the future.”

He offers a self-deprecating smile before heading towards Lily’s room.

He’s right, Simon knows he’s right, but when the person you’re most mad at is yourself it’s—

Well.

It’s a process.

+

He finds Lily sat next to Raphael’s bed, fingers tangled in the sheets like she wants desperately to touch but knows she shouldn’t, and he passes her a mug before leaning back against the dresser.

“Should you be out of bed?” he asks. Lily shoots him a glare and Simon raises his hands in surrender. “Hey,” he says, “I just wouldn’t wanna be on the other end of Magnus’ wrath is all.”

“That man’s a terror,” she says, but the words soften her expression.

...and that’s it, folks. uh, for actually finished versions of the same basic story, let me direct you to when there’s no ground and back, to the time. as i said, i had very specific feelings back in 2016. i love and miss this corner of fandom a lot. someday i’ll remember that i still have to take these boys into the future, into a different world of magic, and to prom. promise 💖

#my fic #saphael #saphael fic #shadowhunters fic #shadowhunters #amnesty fic #unfinished wip #i pretend like two years is a long time #i have a jimon sequel fic from 2012 partly written still on my computer soooo #time is an illusion

[changhomin-hatsukoi]

Okay, first of all: again, I don’t hate Alec. I am however disappointed in him 

One of the main points for Alec stans in defending him is: 

Alec is young.. way too young to understand what he’s done and certainly too young to be responsible for his action in the latest episode.. Magnus should forgive him.. This is Alec’s first relationship.  We should all give him a chance… blablabla…

Infact, there was even some opinions that supported that Magnus was in the fault actually. Because he was the one who chose to be with someone so much younger and inexperienced than he is. So Magnus should have known that this is tough on Alec…etc…

Are you fuckin’ kidding me? 

Seriously, people..!

Okay, you know what.. here’s a list of acceptable fuck-ups that one who.. letssay~ mentally a teenage boy (since you guys loves to infantilize Alec regardless of the fact that Show!Alec is 23 years old young adult and a FUCKIN’ WARRIOR), will probably makes on his first relationship.

- being late on long-awaited/planned date

- forgot about the said date completely actually 

- tend to get engrossed in doing stuff with his friends (in this case, with other fellow Shadowhunters) that his boyfriend could feel neglected.

- Busy being ‘the good bro’ with his besties (in this case, Jace) and being good listener/supporter/ problem-solver that he forgot he has his own sulking lover to make up to.

- Being unnecessarily jealous and sulks all over the place (book!Alec is an expert at this)

- Alternating between being super cringe-worthy sappy romantic and ‘I’m too cool for this PDA nonsense’ jerkface all the time.

- Alternating between being ‘youyouyou’ and ‘mememe' attitude all the time. 

- Making huge embarrassing public gestures to show their undying love

- Jumping to the physical part of the relationship too fast before either party is ready

- Doesn’t understand that it is NOT okay to be so close to the person who clearly has a crush on you… especially in front of your current lover

- Doesn’t realize that honesty is the best way to go and that lies will always come and bite you in the ass later. 

- Doesn’t realize the importance of having the alone just ‘us’ couple time every few other days.

…… I could go on and on.. there are thousands of easy mistakes one could make in his first relationship.

But you know one thing that i could assure you would never ever make that list?

HELPING SOMEONE TO TORTURE AND NEARLY EXECUTE A MAN THAT MIGHT HAVE THE SOUL OF YOUR LOVER STUCK IN HIS BODY!

… and not even legally!! For fuck’s sake, Imogen was acting against the Clave’s decision. At the very LEAST, Alec could protest on the fact that it is fuckin’ illegal!

Being young and inexperienced is not a ‘free pass’ ticket to excuse the fact that this time.. maybe not all the time, but this time you fucked up royally.. 

that you were not only a shitty boyfriend for not even trying very hard to disapprove the claim that your boyfriend’s soul is now in a middle aged most wanted criminal and would rather prefer the easy way of just shutting the man up by executing him before fair trial, 

but you also is heading the right way to be a real shitty leader one day with this blind allegiance you have going on right now. 

We all want him to be the leader of the Institute.

But you can’t say that Alec is ready to be a great leader and at the same time defend him when he was being stupid by giving him excuse of being ‘too young to know better’.

Letssay it was someone else.. some other Downworlder or a Shadowhunter or heck, even an innocent mundane just passing by that got their soul swapped with Valentine. 

The fact that he absolutely completely refused to try to remove all reasonable doubts by finding the truth or at least to prove that Valentine is truly lying. 

That he would rather gambled with someone else’s life (in this case, the life of the person he claimed to love) than to even..try.. 

I.. I don’t know.. It’s just.. on so many levels of fuck up that I don’t even know what to say..

And for fans to actually blame Magnus?

Implying that he had this coming just because he fell in love.. decided to trusts his heart and safety to someone younger than him.. because he has such a kind gentle heart that he willingly helps them regardless how they always take him for granted..

Just… how could you? 

Are you really that obsessed with the need to have your idea of an ideal character of ‘innocent sweet virginal delicate’ Alec?

And obviously Magnus must be the predator incapable of any feelings because he is older, right? And he got to bend over backwards for this poor innocent naive angel in everything, right?

PSA to all SH fans~!!:

Newsflash: ALEC LIGHTWOOD IS NOT A BABY.. so STOP infantilizing him!

you guys do realized that in order to cater for your own kink, you literally implied that he is incapable to learn to be more responsible of his action and to be more open-minded and be more confident in his own gut instinct, right? 

tbh, all those fics that keep trying to enforce the idea that Magnus should forgive Alec just like that… makes me sick. 

No, it wasn’t Alec’s fault that Magnus’s soul were swapped. 

And I’m pretty sure Magnus knows that too.

BUT

- His inaction is the problem.

- His ‘I’m sorry for everything you had to go through’ rather than ‘I’m sorry I didn’t believe you.. and I’m sorry I’m almost too late..’ is the problem.

- His concern only coz ‘you never refused to help me when I need it..’ is the problem. 

And I’m pretty sure Magnus wouldn’t forget how easily and willingly Alec grabbed him roughly, tied him down and gagged him in the middle of him begging.. 

And how Alec never tried to stop or to even pause the torture when he was crying and calling out his Mama..

And how Alec saved him with just three extremely short sentences (9 words to be exact) from Jace (who somehow Alec believed instantly despite not even being there physically and could maybe be mind controlled for all he knows..).

And remember, Jace said: “Alec, I’m so sorry. You were right. They switched.”

You. 

Were.

Right.

So, obviously Alec did have some doubts.

And what did he do with it?

Nothing.

And that.. is why Magnus deserves better.

#personal-opinion #malec #idonthatealec #justdisappointed #ilovethisshowreally

#malec #personal opinion #i'm so disappointed in you alec #you better grovel hard #magnus has enough shit from you and your fellow shadowhunters #shadowhunters #rant/rave #i love this show..really~ #but that doesn't mean i will tolerate their bs #best cast #fandom