Disclaimer: All Characters Belong to Cassandra Clare

Epilogue

The florist smiled warmly at the customer. She knew the man. Tall, lanky, pale face that matched beautifully with blue eyes. Every day she could see him passing through her shop front in uniform, probably doing security in the nearby art museum. Always in a hurry in the morning and tired in the evening with a contented smile on his face. Strangely she grew fonder of the man by this way. And when this time he actually came in, dressed in a plain grey T-shirt and jeans, she greeted him right away.

"What can I get for you?" She asked, trying to get up from her seat behind the counter. A shot of pain came from her hip and she groaned,slightly startled the young man.

"Are you okay?" He asked, and walked to hold her arms to give her some leverage.

"Old bones, that's all." She explained. With his help she stood properly and asked again. "Want to get some flowers for special occasion?"

"Yeah," he shook his head shyly, "I don't know what people usually get for times like these. I'm not used to these things."

His eyes darted around before he said with a hint of sadness. "It's been a year since - since his death and I thought it would be nice to bring something with me."

"Oh dear," she patted his arm to express her sympathy, and walked to the arrays of flowers to pick some for him.

"Do you have a budget?"

"No. Anything is fine."

She got some white orchids and wrapped them in vanilla color papers. It was a simple bouquet without other floral decoration. He looked like a man of neat style. The young man waited patiently as she did her work.

"Here you go, darling." She handed the bouquet to him carefully.

"They look great." He said, eyes fixed on the pedals like he was looking at some precious gems.

"All home-grown." She smiled again.

"How much is it?" His spare hand fumbled in the jeans's pocket.

"It's on the house."

He shook his head and got some bills out. "No, I am paying you."

"Then give me a dollar," she laughed when she saw the confusion in his eyes. "Just say hi when you pass by next time. You are my first customer since last week. No pressure to buy anything."

He obviously pondered on the suggestion, and at last gave her the one dollar bill. "Sure, why not."

"Be seeing you!" She mimicked the young people and the phrase made him grin.

"Bye! See you tomorrow." Then he was out of the door for his destination.

She knew he would keep his words.

Once he exited the floral shop his thought drifted from the lovely old lady to the purpose of today. He had taken a day off from his work.

He was not a person of rituals or ceremony, probably a result of growing in an orphanage. It was about following a routine. Celebrations or anything that break the routine were discouraged - or more accurately, not allowed in their isolated experimental ground. Therefore, Alec and his friends never had had any birthday parties. No holiday on Thanksgiving, no dinner gathering on Christmas. It was just another day in the orphanage for them. When Alec was together with Jonathan, they didn't do Valentine's Day or anniversary. All they did was look after each other and love with all their hearts. Until that happened.

"Sorry!" Alec apologized when he bumped into a pedestrian. He was deep in thought that he wasn't paying attention.

A little embarrassed, Alec resumed walking and held the small bouquet closer to his chest. He didn't want it to get crushed before he arrived at the place.

It took him some time to get there; it wasn't close to where they lived. Alec took the train and transferred with bus to get to the cemetery. The route to the grave was fresh memory in his mind so Alec easily navigated himself to that one gravestone he was looking for. The gravestone didn't have many decorations; it wrote Jonathan's name, the dates of his birth and death, and a line of epitaph at the bottom, Beloved brother and father. Magnus suggested adding the epitaph, thinking it would show the descendants at least some personalities of Jonathan. Alec agreed after some thoughts. Jonathan was a good person before he was slowly eaten away by the demon blood forced into him. He wasn't making excuses for him. What Jonathan did, what they had done as the Circle, were not forgivable. They should leave it behind with a more positive look. He would tell Max about his father, about his bad deeds as cautionary tale. About how he sacrificed himself for Max as his ultimate love for the child. Max will learn all about him and Alec will tell him the truth.

Alec pulled out a small handkerchief to dust off the gravestone and picked up some fallen leaves away from it. He put the flowers down and arranged it so that it would stand up straight, leaning slightly on the stone by the side.

The cemetery was quiet with some visitors. Alec sat down in front of the stone. Magnus said he might feel better if he talked to him. To a dead person's grave. Alec was doubtful but he was trying. They had not talked about Jonathan since around one year ago except when they were in court for the trials. He didn't feel the need to express what he felt. He had to focus on the future and settled down for a life. He busied himself with Max, with getting a place to live, with refusing Magnus's help. So many feelings were buried deep that Alec ignored all of them until one day he found himself too exhausted to even get up from bed. It was the mental pressure that was pushing him over the edge. The thought of ending his life skipped through his mind bu he stopped instantly when Max cried for his father. At that moment he realized he needed help. He turned to the one person he trusted most: Magnus. The Warlock helped him without expectations and Alec was getting better. One thing at a time, he cleared the fog that blocked Alec's vision to let him SEE.

It was also Magnus's idea to visit Jonathan's grave.

Alec sat with his legs cross. Before he came he had prepared a speech. Apparently, the real deal was different than his imagination. He had a speech; but he didn't know how to start when he was here directly looking at the grave of Jonathan. At some level, he was still in denial. He had avoided talking about it because he could pretend Jonathan was alive somewhere. He could lie to himself. Now, facing the gravestone, the cruel physical representation of the death of his past love, Alec began.

"Max and I are doing great. Sort of." He said. "I've got us a place in the suburb. Max loves the small backyard. He has a gift with animals. Stray cats and dogs let him pet them. He is learning to speak too. I think I will get a private tutor before he goes to school. Magnus says he is a smart child."

Alec tugged the grasses with his fingers. "I haven't talked to Jace or Clary for a while now. They... seem angry at the world and I can't get in contact with them. He is my Parabatai but nothing connects us together other than the rune and the bond. I don't know. The trials were too hard for him. I think they blame themselves too, for things end up the way they do. I don't know."

His hand rested on top of the Parabatai rune. He still felt the subtle ache from Jace.

"Magnus has invited them over for dinner. I am not sure what their reply is."

Honestly, he had tried to find Jace and Clary in the past year. The pair seemed to keep their heads under the radar that he could only find their address through Magnus's extensive network. Alec reported what he had heard from him. "They are working in an animal farm. Probably they feel safer not working with humans. Trust takes time to build."

They needed to learn how to trust people again. All of them did. Alec couldn't understand how he and Jace had grown apart. Maybe it was the bloods, maybe not - the Experiment and the followed events had changed them in every possible way. They were not what they used to be an they couldn't reverse the effect. They could only adapt.

With approaching footsteps and whispers, Alec shut up until the visitors had walked away. He was feeling shy that people might overhear what he said. Thinking that he should say something more, he continued to update.

"Sebastian was devastated after... after your death." Alec gulped. "The pain of tearing one's Parabatai away from him was too much. He got better now. He received training to be a proper Shadowhunter and he is staying in the London Institute, saying he is destined to protect Mundanes and maintain the orders of the Shadow World. It is hard for him. His left hand couldn't hold weapons and he was a Circle member. He gets promoted away. Too smart for judgmental pricks to stop him. He is always a good strategist."

A blow of wind knocked the bouquet and Alec set it right again, this time laying it down on the grass so that it wouldn't fall over.

"Izzy is in coma. The demon blood seems to act differently in her from those in you. Like sleeping beauty, just that it is not a kiss she will awake to. Catarina is finding a cure. The chance is pretty slim. Her body is decaying, don't know if she could survive till a cure or treatment is invented."

Alec exhaled deeply when tears started to gather. It was better than last year but things remain gloomy. He didn't know he was this angry, this despair of reality, not until he heard himself saying it out loud.

"I wish you were here," A tear fell as he touched the craved name on the stone.

Magnus could finally rest after he had cooed Max to nap. The cradle was set right next to the sofa. He summoned a cup of tea and some files and relaxed into the sofa. Sipping the tea, he relished the taste on his tongue before reading through the materials. Checked the clock on the wall, it was only 1 pm. Alec had left an hour ago and he wouldn't come back soon. Trying to occupy himself in the meantime, he read the papers. They were prepared by a Werewolf prosecutor from the Clave.

The past 12 months Magnus had actively participated in the trials. After they got back Max and the tragic death of Jonathan, they arrested Burnell and handed him to the Clave. It was the biggest news and gossip at the time because evidence showed that the Downworld Council was involved in such inhumane practice for a long time, and the Clave was reluctant to take the case: it would shatter the peace of the whole Shadow World. Magnus couldn't help but sneer at that. Too many Downworlders were part of it in various degrees and far too many Shadowhunters had turned a blind eye. The Experiment had gone on for some decades and the Circle had brought it to the surface at last. Magnus had taken it as his responsibility to see the trial would go through. For Warlocks like him and Catarina, there was some sort of guilt inside them. Those crazy Downworlders operated the Experiment right under their nose and yet they had not noticed it once in the past that there could be something fishy. Power comes corruption and further, the illusion of ultimate control. Magnus personally would make sure they got what they deserved. After all, he had plenty of time.

It was a slow trial; convincing the Clave to lead the investigation, collecting all the evidence, finding fair people to hold the trials, officially prosecuting all the involved personnel, and in the process digging out more horrible shits they had done not only to Nephilims, but also Mundanes and fellow Downworlders. Not to mention the guilty people started to accuse each other, pushing the responsibility around. The Circle was just a start and Sebastian often joked if he could see the end of it before he died.

In fact, yesterday he attended a court against Camille. She never admitted she had a major role as a patron in the Experiment. Always good with words, she made it sound like she was under other's influence. Luckily, the Warlock who oversaw the case was wise with her age. Little tricks couldn't play her around and Camille was found guilty based on other evidence. Her sentencing would be announced later. Magnus wanted to tell Alec about the good news. Considered the sensitivity of today, he didn't.

Exhaled a breath, the heavy weight on his chest lifted and he concentrated on the reading. From time to time he checked up on Max. The child was soundly asleep. He had missed the clever boy when Alec decided to stay away from Shadowhunter business right after the start of those trials except when he was needed at the court. And he was glad when Alec called him - not quite when he showed up at Alec's doorstep and saw what state he was in. The situation had improved. Magnus found them a suitable house at the edge of the city. Sometimes he would be Max's babysitter and let Alec work as security guard in local museum without worrying too much. He had a drawer in the house because of his frequent visit to watch over the child. Practically he had two homes: one in Brooklyn, one with Alec and Max.

He got back to the files. It was almost 5 pm when a fire message appeared on the coffee table. He took the small piece of paper and smiled as he finished reading. Finding his cup empty, he set the files aside and left the comfortable sofa. He needed something to refresh his mind and a yawn echoed the idea so he went straight to the kitchen to make some coffee.

As soon as he had made his cup, he heard the sound of door being unlocked. Alec was entering when he peeked from the kitchen door.

"Hey, how's it going?" Magnus offered his cup to Alec, but the former Shadowhunter refused.

Magnus withdrew his hand, watched Alec closing the door and taking off his shoes. Noticed his stare, Alec asked as he threw his keys on top of the shoes cabinet.

"What?" Alec asked with confusion.

"I didn't expect you to come back this early."

Alec let out a sigh and his shoulders dropped. His instinct had his eyes settled on Max's cradle. "It went alright, I guess."

"Had you been crying?" Magnus stepped closer and found the blue eyes red and somewhat puffy.

"No." Alec insisted and walked past Magnus to reach the cradle. His steps were without sound that it wouldn't wake the child up. Max had used up all of his energy in the morning playtime.

Magnus knew the cue that he shouldn't press the issue further. "It doesn't have to be a routine, you know. You can go visit him and talk to him if you like. Just drop by and say hi."

"It feels weird when it is only me talking," Alec answered, his back to Magnus. "Do you think he hears me?"

"I am sure he can," Magnus put the cup on the coffee table. Testing the water, he put his hands on Alec's arms first. When the young man didn't flinch, he grew bolder and hugged him from behind. He whispered into his ears. "He will always listens to you."

Alec followed the flow and rested his head on Magnus's shoulder. It was nice knowing that Magnus would have his back. He knew how Magnus felt about him. Perhaps it was responsibility, but he knew by the way the Warlock looked at him and how he took care of Max like his own.

It was love and Alec ached to return it. There was one thing that hindered him to accept Magnus completely. He loves Magnus. He hadn't been so certain about one thing for a long time. Just that... he needed time. Alec wasn't sure if he was prepared to be in a serious relationship. They were acting like a couple but they hadn't given any promise to each other. They both understood the importance of commitment in a relationship. He was grateful that Magnus respected his decision and waited.

As if he could sense Alec's emotion, Magnus held him tighter and planted a kiss on his temple.

"I have some good news," the soft voice made Alec shiver in a nice way. "Jace and Clary agree to meet up next week. They are coming over for a two-week holiday from the farm."

"Did you talk with them?" He asked.

"Not directly. They favor using fire messages."

"Good." Alec beamed with joy and soothed Magnus's forearms. "That's good."

With the flick of his fingers, Magnus had turned on the radio. They swayed to the music and enjoyed the small moment of peaceful of silence in their life.

A/N:

And that's it for Under Nobody's Wings. I have to thank every one of you who has read through the story and make it to the end with me. Special thanks to Quiet Ryter and D. Your comments, especially in the later part of the story help me finish it after such a long time.

I am used to leave things unsaid, but Alec and Magnus will live happily in this world. I promise this is a good ending, right? :p

This work also marks the end of my love for Malec. I don't think I will write for them again.

Thanks for reading this, and I hope you all have a great day!