Chapter Text
Alec was resting in the loft. He spent another night of fruitless research. It was 11 PM. He just got back from the Institute. He should go to sleep, he had to get up soon back to work, but he couldn’t. He barely slept these days. He was unable to forget that Magnus was in Edom, far from his reach. Proved by the last 11 months of never-ending searching. His siblings tried to convince him to rest and sleep, but Alec couldn’t. He couldn’t bear the fact that Magnus was in Edom. His kind fiancé for whom Edom was his worst nightmare. It was only made worse by the fact that Alec knew this was once again his own fault. If not for him and his siblings and Clary, Magnus wouldn’t have gone to such lengths to save Alicante, wouldn’t have gone to literal hell to save strangers. Especially not Shadowhunters, the people that considered him and his kind beneath them.
Alec would never give up, wouldn’t abandon that one person he loved above all else to Edom. Everyone else had given up though, believing they exhausted their options. His siblings had given up after 3 months of researching, Catarina after 5. She tried to convince him that Magnus will find a way back home by himself, but he knew not even she believed it.
Alec knew finding something now was minimal. They went through Magnus and Catarina's libraries and even some tomes from the Spiral Labyrinth that Catarina had brought. Everything that had a possibility of containing something about Edom, portals to Hell, and closing the rifts properly. But no one was capable of traveling to Edom nowadays, including warlocks. No one knew why but Catarina believed the rift of such a magnitude threw Edom off the course and caused traveling there unstable. There was a chance that enough power would allow them to stabilize the portal and travel there successfully, but it would take at least a dozen warlocks and Lorenzo had refused his help.
Of course, that wouldn't stop Alec from trying but apparently even if they traveled there, it would be useless. Magnus was keeping the rift closed and without finding a way to close it completely, traveling to Edom was pointless.
Alec took great pleasure in the fact that after saving Alicante, Catarina and other Brooklyn warlocks informed the Spiral Labyrinth of all the happenings here and Lorenzo was on shaky ground with them. He was severely reprimanded for not helping with Lilith whom they saw as a very serious threat to the entire warlock community, and he became greatly despised for claiming he purified the ley lines. Apparently, among the warlock community, to claim another warlock’s accomplishments is abhorrent. The only reason he was still the High Warlock of Brooklyn was that there was no one else to take it. Warlocks still hoped Magnus might find his way back.
Alec divided his time between the Institute and Magnus’s loft that Lorenzo had given up after his time as a lizard. His siblings and friends kept telling him he shouldn’t be staying there and torturing himself with memories of Magnus but for Alec, it was a reminder of what-or rather who-he had lost and must get back. It gave him the strength to continue. The only other person who still supported him was his mother, which was surprising to him. Maryse explained that she knew he’d never give up on Magnus, not after everything, so the least she could do was support him.
Alec sighed, he wasn’t getting anywhere, and he knew it. Suddenly, he heard the door to the loft open. It was Jace.
“Hey, you still awake?” he asked.
“Yeah, I was just reading.” He didn’t want to admit, he was thinking about Magnus, so he picked up the closest book to him on a random page. Jace looked at him.
“Right. Let’s say I believe you.” Jace answered.
“I thought you went to stalk Clary once again,” he told Jace.
“I don’t stalk Clary,” Jace answered haughtily. “I was just checking on her.”
“Right,” Alec replied sarcastically. “You just follow her everywhere, anytime you’re off duty without her knowing about it. I’m pretty sure that’s stalking.”
Jace was the only one who understood at least a little what Alec was going through. What it meant to lose the love of your life. But Jace could at least see Clary, he knew she was safe and happy. Alec didn’t have this comfort. He hasn’t seen Magnus in 11 months, longer than they had even been together. He didn’t know if Magnus was safe-only that he was alive- considering the rift stayed closed. And what was worse, he knew Magnus wasn’t happy. After all, he was in hell. Trapped there with no one but demons.
They didn’t even know what’s going on with Lilith, she didn’t come back after Jonathan’s final death and that was the confirmation, she was trapped in Edom, by Magnus presumably. But she could be biding her time or trying to kill Magnus, and they’d have no idea. Alec kept up hope, now Magnus was King of Edom, he had enough power Lilith didn’t present a threat to him. He knew though if Lilith ever harmed Magnus, or worse, Greater Demon or not, Alec would find a way to destroy her if it was the last thing he ever did.
“As if you wouldn’t do the same thing if it were Magnus,” Jace’s voice snapped Alec out of his thoughts. Jace was right of course, Alec would definitely do the same.
“Yeah, but you are the lucky one. You can see her. Raziel, you could pretend to be a mundane and be with her. I can’t go to Edom,” Alec’s voice lowered to whisper at the end.
“This got really depressing, really fast,” Jace said. “You know what? We’re going to get a drink.”
“I’m not going anywhere.”
“Nah, I meant, we’re going to take something from Mag-I mean from the collection in the loft.” With this said, Jace went in search of something to drink.
No one has spoken Magnus’s name in front of Alec for the past two months. Not since Alec broke down crying when his last trace turned out to be useless.
Jace returned with an old-looking bottle. “This one looks expensive,” Alec remarked.
“Everything here’s expensive. If you sold that stash of alcohol, you’d probably make a few million,' Jace answered. But Alec wasn’t paying attention anymore. “There’s an endowment on the bottle. We shouldn’t be drinking it.”
“What’s written there? Perhaps it was from some king or queen, would pretty much fit in M-his habits," Jace joked.
They both looked at the endowment. ‘For my favorite nephew. For Magnus from Lucifer.”
“No way,” Jace said. “This must be some namesake.”
“Right,” Alec replied with a voice full of sarcasm. “Because Magnus’s got more uncles called Lucifer.”
And wasn't that the truth. Magnus's father was a Prince of Hell, a Fallen Angel, and weren't all angels technically siblings? Which made Magnus the Devil's nephew, the favorite nephew, if the note is anything to go by.
Suddenly, Alec had an idea.
“Jace, that’s it,” he exclaimed in excitement. For the first time in weeks, he didn’t feel tired. Once again he had hope, he could see Magnus again.
“What?” Jace was surprised by his parabatai’s excitement.
“Lucifer is the King of Hell. He could help.”
“Again, what? Have you gone absolutely mad? It’s the Devil, we’re talking about here. What suggests he’d help us, not even mentioning some frankly ridiculous payment. What do you think he’d ask for a price, hm? Remember the last time you made a deal with Hell’s royalty?” Jace was sure his brother’s finally cracked. He knew Alec wasn’t dealing with Magnus’s loss well, no one would. Jace understood it. Magnus was practically family. They all missed him.
Of course, Alec remembered, but he had to try this. It was his last hope, the only chance he might have of seeing Magnus again.
“What if it was Clary?” he returned Jace’s earlier words.
“OK, fine. I’ll help. Just be careful,” Jace knew he lost. He could see it on Alec’s face. “What can I do to help?” he asked in the end.