Chapter Text
It wasn’t his fault.
Okay, so maybe it was his fault, but he could hardly be blamed, and how was he supposed to know that the box had been cursed not once, but twice!
Who double-cursed their jewelry boxes in this day and age, it was simply ridiculous.
Magnus let out a huff and blinked at the jet of flame that escaped his mouth, causing another shout to echo in the Hunter’s Moon. He looked at the several wolves who were staring at him warily and blew another small stream of fire at them, making them scramble backward.
That’s what they got for thinking he was a bird.
He didn’t, and wouldn’t, of course, hurt any of them.
(Unless someone tried to grab his tail again, then all bets were off and he would see just how sharp these teeth and claws were.)
However, then one of the wolves had to make the colossally stupid decision of calling the Shadowhunters, right after they’d barred the door and the windows. Now he was stuck here, and he was going to have to try to escape from the Nephilim.
He’d never liked Tuesdays.
~!~
Tuesdays were absolutely miserable.
That was something Alec had realized long ago, back when he was still training to be the Acting Head, with no official title to his name yet, and it was something that held true even now that he was officially Acting Head of the Institute.
Today held that sentiment even more true. Because what other day of the week would it be when Alec got a phone call that there was a dragon down at the Hunter’s Moon.
“A... dragon ?” Alec repeated into the phone.
Maia made a noise that was half scoff, half snort. “ Yeah, Lightwood, a dragon. And no one can get in contact with the High Warlock to handle it, so can you get down here and take care of it before it burns the whole place down?”
Which was how Alec found himself standing outside the Hunter’s Moon with his sister and his parabatai behind him. There were wolves on the sidewalk across from the building, like they couldn’t quite bring themselves to stand over there, and the building itself had been sealed off with a dumpster of all things.
“About time you got here,” Maia said, arms crossed over her chest. “Took you long enough.”
Alec ignored whatever bickering remark his parabatai gave in return. He eyed the building in front of him and wondered absently if maybe he should’ve brought more than just his siblings. The dragon couldn't be too big considering the size of the Hunter’s Moon. But, still… How on earth they were supposed to take care of a dragon of all things, he had no idea. As Maia had said, something like this seemed like the purview of the High Warlock. But in lieu of him, someone had to deal with this, and apparently, the world had decided that someone was him .
Fucking Tuesdays .
~!~
There was a commotion outside the building and Magnus settled against the bar as he watched whatever had been shoved in front of the door move away. He could hear (and his hearing was far better than he’d expected as a dragon) Maia explaining the situation to someone briefly, and then there was the someone who sounded almost as annoyed as he was.
He had not spent centuries running away and evading capture from the Shadowhunters to be run through with a seraph blade today.
Magnus kept his eyes on the door as it was slowly opened and three shadowhunters stepped in. A quick glance at their formation had his eyes drifting to the tallest one in the back. That was the one in charge. Clearly.
He stood and shook out his wings, ready to dive away from them if they tried to come at him with those pointy blades and arrows of theirs, his claws digging into the wood of the bar. Magnus let a small growl build in his throat before another slow inhale brought the scent of all three shadowhunters to him.
His eyes snapped to the tall one in the back again, and this time, a far more possessive growl curled in his throat. That one was his, belonged to him, and no one else.
Mine.
~!~
Alec wasn’t sure what he’d expected to find when he walked into the building. With the way the others had clearly been freaked out, and the fact that Maia of all people was willing to call in shadowhunters to help, he’d sort of expected to find the Hunter’s Moon in ruins. Broken tables, shattered glass. Maybe even an injury or two.
Instead, things looked almost peaceful, albeit a little singed here and there. Nothing was broken, no one was dead or injured, which sort of putting this a step up from anything Alec had imagined on the way over here.
The low sound of a growl caught Alec’s attention. It had his gaze snapping to the side, following the sound to its source. What he saw had Alec sucking in a surprised breath. There, sitting on the bar was the single most beautiful creature Alec had ever seen. The dragon .
Its scales were a beautiful shade of black, with just a hint of some sort of shimmer where the light landed on them, and their eyes were gold and alight with power. There was an intelligence there beyond what Alec had expected to find.
They let out another growl, this one somehow deeper, and it sent a shiver down Alec’s spine.
Jace made as if to move, his hand already in the process of drawing his blade, and Alec quickly reached out to stop him. “No, wait.”
Though neither Jace nor Isabelle turned around, their attention shifted toward him. “Alec?” Isabelle asked hesitantly. Her whip was already looser, curling around her hand and fingers like it itched to be free.
Alec used his hand on Jace’s arm to draw him back. Just enough that he could slip between the two and in front of them. He kept his eyes on the dragon as he did. “We come in peace,” he said slowly, ignoring the amused snort his sister gave. “No one wants to hurt you. We’re just here to help.”
~!~
Carefully, Magnus inched closer, walking along the bar, his wings still open and poised to help him run if he needed to. But the Shadowhunters weren’t attacking, they weren’t doing anything other than watching him.
The tall one, his, his Shadowhunter , took another step closer and Magnus leaped off the bar to land on the table that the tall one was on the other side of. His movement had clearly rattled the other two, because the sound of a weapon being drawn had him spreading his wings wider.
He growled again, this time turning pleading eyes to the one who had said they were here to help. Magnus lowered his head and gave another growl, this one trailing off into a faint whine. He wasn’t going to make it out of here without their help or getting past them.
But the idea of leaving his Shadowhunter behind made something uncomfortable twist deep in his magic, so Magnus took another hesitant step forward and stretched his neck out, a quiet trilling escaping him.
Magnus didn’t know what it was about this Shadowhunter, with those earnest eyes, but his magic and instincts were telling him that he could trust his word. If only a little.
He was a Shadowhunter after all. (And his , but he’d examine that more later.)
~!~
The way those eyes watched him should’ve been disconcerting. Yet Alec didn’t feel uncomfortable or threatened. Not even when the dragon leaped forward onto the table closer to him.
Though Jace clearly felt threatened by it, judging by the way he quickly drew his weapon. Despite the fact that it was clear the dragon wasn’t trying to cause any trouble. The growling whine they gave only furthered that belief.
Alec shot Jace a sharp glare over his shoulder. He mentally resolved to give Jace another lecture as to why weapons were not always the answer. Maybe even throw him back into a few diplomacy classes. The man was a great fighter, and Alec wanted nothing more than to have Jace at his side in battle, but when it came to peacekeeping or diplomacy… well, it wasn’t his strong suit.
That was for later, though. For now, Alec turned his focus back to the dragon in front of him.
Everything about the dragon, the way they looked, the way they moved, suggested they were intelligent. Which was backed by most of the dragon legends Alec had ever heard or read. That meant that he was going to treat them like they were intelligent until he saw reason to do otherwise.
“You’re safe,” Alec promised him. Nothing about the dragon made it seem like they were here to cause trouble, and so long as that stayed the case, Alec would do everything he could to solve whatever was going on here as peacefully as possible. “So long as you don’t plan on hurting any of us, no one is going to try and hurt you, okay?”
~!~
Magnus huffed and peered up at the shadowhunter. Fine. If that was what he was going to have to do to get out of here without being skewered by a seraph blade, then that was what he would do. He carefully tucked his wings back against his back and continued his trek across the table.
He made sure to give a pointed glance to the weapon that one of the shadowhunters was holding and turned back to… Alec. The woman had called him Alec.
A zing of magic shot through him at the name, and the closer he got, the more Magnus felt surrounded by the scent of something that belonged to him. He let out another soft trill, a small vibrato in the back of his throat, and stopped at the edge of the table, staring at his shadowhunter. Alec.
Shuffling his wings and tail, Magnus settled into a comfortable sitting position and stared at the shadowhunter in front of him, stretching his neck out. At least Alec hadn’t been able to look away from him either, and the possessive curl of his magic got tighter as their eyes met again.
Magnus was embarrassed by the small pleading chirp that left him a moment later, but he wanted, needed , Alec closer, and he wasn’t about to move off the table when the blonde shadowhunter still had a weapon drawn. He couldn’t form words, but trying to call Alec’s name led to another small chirp escaping him.
Mine. My Alec. Mine.
~!~
Considering the situation, Alec probably shouldn’t have found the little dragon quite as adorable as he did. Yet that was the only word he could come up with when the little one stretched their neck out and gave that tiny little chirp. They weren’t coming any closer - something Alec couldn’t really blame them for considering Jace had pout his weapon away yet even if he’d lowered it.
The dragon let out another small chirp, and was it Alec’s imagination, or did that one sound almost sadder than the last.
Whatever it was, it tugged at Alec’s heartstrings. He was moving before the thought finished crossing his mind.
Alec ignored the murmur of his name and the furious hiss from behind him, and he sank down to one knee to put himself and the dragon at a more even height. Something that he hoped might make him appear less intimidating. This dragon was small - maybe it was young and rightfully scared of three armed people towering over them.
“Hey now, shh, it’s okay,” Alec murmured. He lifted one hand, and for a moment he hesitated, not sure if it was the right thing to do or if it would even be well received. But that soft sound the dragon had made still pulled at him. Something in Alec demanded that he reach out, that he help soothe, and he couldn’t do anything else.
Trusting in his siblings and his own reflexes to pull him back if this ended up being a mistake, Alec lightly brushed his fingers against the side of the dragon’s head, curling them down and under a little like he’d do with Church, the Institute cat. “That’s it. I told you, no one’s gonna hurt you.”
~!~
Magnus was never going to be able to make fun of all the cats that he put out milk for, ever again. Ever.
He’d tensed when Alec’s fingers had drawn closer, but then they were stroking along his head, and down along his neck and Magnus had to keep himself from swaying it felt so good. He closed his eyes and leaned into the touch, encouraging it as he tilted his head into Alec’s hand at the gentle touch of his fingers.
When Alec’s fingers pressed a little harder into him, Magnus felt the low rumble gathering in his belly and pushed more of his head and neck into Alec’s hand. His Shadowhunter smelled so good and he wanted this scent to sink into him and cover him just as much as he wanted to bury himself in it and never leave.
Magnus shuffled awkwardly at the edge of the table, wanting to press closer and have more of those gentle touches, but Alec hadn’t moved closer yet. A small grumpy huff left him and he turned, moving slowly so Alec could see what he was doing, and sank his teeth into the cuff of Alec’s sleeve, tugging more of his hand forward so he could immediately nuzzle into his fingers.
A pleased growl escaped him and he peeked up at Alec before butting his head into the center of Alec’s palm. His Shadowhunter could give him more of those gentle scratches now.
~!~
The sound Isabelle let out when the dragon bit hold of Alec’s sleeve and tugged his hand forward made it clear this wasn’t something he was going to hear the end of for a long time. Which Alec would care a lot about - later. When he wasn’t being pulled closer by said dragon, with a surprisingly gentle touch.
The way the dragon butted up against the palm of Alec’s hand was a clear demand for more attention, more scratches, and there was no way Alec could do anything else. He curled his fingers in once more and carefully scratched at the back of the dragon’s head, down along their jaw, and under their chin.
“By the Angel, that’s adorable !” Isabelle’s voice was almost a coo.
A soft huff left Jace, and Alec could practically hear the other man’s eyes rolling. “Yeah, it’s real cute. Can we maybe spend less time petting the dragon and a little more time figuring out what we’re gonna do with it?” Jace’s voice changed, and Alec knew he was grinning. “I don’t know about the rest of you, but I’ve got plans tonight. I’ve been looking forward to my night off all week.”
Alec rolled his eyes. He looked down at the dragon head nestle so trustingly in his palm, and he sighed a little. In all honesty, Jace wasn’t wrong. They needed to figure out what to do here. Maia was going to want the bar back at some point.
“What am I gonna do with you?” Alec asked quietly.