Woohoo! Alright, I'm back. XD Okay, so I finished reading The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare a few days back and just HAD to jump into the fandom here on . While I, like many other girls I'm sure, fell prey to the charms of that golden angel, Jace, I have to say that my true love in the books was none other than that glittery warlock of epic-ness: Magnus Bane. I soon fell deeply into the Magnus/Alec romance (I was soooooooooo happy it was actually canon!) and just had to start throwing my own works out there. Seriously, guys, let's keep up the love here, shall we? XD

I apologize for the shortness of this chapter, by the way; I'm really busy at the moment with personal life. ;_; After next week I should have plenty of time to write and get this baby really going. ^.^ Thanks in advance to all the wonderful people who read and review this. You guys are awesome!!!

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Anniversary

One year. One whole year. Could time really have gone by so fast?

Alec Lightwood shook his head lightly, the softest of smiles on his lips as he slipped his arms into his long Shadowhunter coat. He ignored the slight discomfort the extra heat brought to his body, knowing that it would be well worth it by the end of the night.

And what a special night it would be.

It had been exactly one year since he and Magnus became an official couple, and so much had changed in the course of all that time. The most surprising bit, at least to Alec, was how it seemed to have all happened in the blink of an eye.

It all started with the kiss in the Accords Hall.

Alec's smile brightened as he remembered it, his blue eyes dazzling as his mind became consumed in the memory. Something inside him had snapped that day, a dam of emotion that he could no longer deny himself…or Magnus. He could remember the feeling of his insides knotting up in his gut, his vision becoming blurry with how swiftly his eyes darted back and forth across the room as he sought out the shimmering warlock, how he momentarily forgot how to breathe upon finally spotting him.

Even now, Alec could feel a shudder run down his spine even as he walked briskly towards the front doors of the Institute.

"Just like then…" he murmured faintly to himself, the corner of his lips tugging into a sly grin as he matched his step—stride for stride—exactly as he had done that day.

He could remember the way his body had kicked into hyper-drive as he strode boldly across the room to Magnus, pushing people (some, none too gently) out of his way as he went. The minute he saw those amber-green eyes meet his, his heart skipped a beat. This is it, he had told himself. Now or never….

"Alec, watch it!"

Giving a light jump as he snapped out of his thoughts, Alec looked over his shoulder to where Jace's voice had come from, his lips parted in the start of a question.

"Wha—?"

He didn't manage to get the last syllable out, however, as his foot caught on the small end table that Jace had been trying to warn him about. He vaguely caught sight of Jace smacking his forehead before he went down, crashing to the floor with an unceremonious thud.

He gave soft gasp of surprise, though it was cut off with a sharp hiss of pain as the side of his face nicked the corner he had been about to turn right at. He pressed his forehead into the carpet with a groan, feeling a small trickle of blood running down from his temple, just as he heard Jace's footsteps approaching him.

"Way to pay attention to your surroundings, Alec," snickered the blond Shadowhunter, amusement dancing in his golden eyes. "No wonder you always manage to get your ass handed to you during a demon fight."

"I don't always get my ass handed to me," mumbled Alec with a faint twitch as he pushed himself up, a bit surprised to feel the gentle pressure of Jace's hand catching his arm and hauling him up the rest of the way. He smirked over at the younger boy, adding, "In fact, I've even saved yours once or twice."

"Yeah, and you got the shit beat out of you for doing it," said Jace a bit seriously, his golden eyes darkening slightly as he remembered the numerous times Alec had nearly been killed trying to protect him. They darkened even further when he noticed the thin line of crimson that trailed down his face. "By the way, you're bleeding...."

Alec blinked, his mind a bit clouded by pain, before reaching up and gently dabbing at the source of it. He winced slightly, both from the light sting that shot through his mind like a well-aimed arrow and from the feel of wetness on his fingertips. He smiled grimly as he examined the blood upon them, murmuring, "Well…that's lovely."

"Want me to go grab you a wash cloth or something?" asked Jace, knowing that using the healing rune wasn't going to clean up the mess. "Or maybe a bottle of Tylenol?"

"Nah, I'll be alright," snickered Alec with a light shake of his head…which he stopped abruptly due to the discomfort it lead to. "I really need to get going. I'll patch myself up along the way."

"Stubborn," muttered Jace, unable to prevent the smirk from crossing his features.

"Shut up," grinned Alec before heading back down the hall. "I'll see you later. Tell Izzy I'll call her later…and not to burn up too much money on shoes."

"She and Clary have been gone since noon…I think it'll be too late," groaned Jace as he glanced over his shoulder at a wall clock; sulking lightly as it dutifully reflected the time as being 4:36PM.

With a light laugh, Alec called back, "Too true. Well, see you later."

He headed back down the hall at a faster pace, turning the corner sharply and vanishing completely from Jace's view.

"Have fun with Magnus," Jace said in a quiet voice, his grin all the brighter.

~*~

"What about this one?"

Chairman Meow blinked, his tiny head tilted in light confusion as he watched his owner storm out of his bedroom and over to the chair he was sitting on. While it was completely normal for his owner to put on one outfit and decide that it didn't quite have the effect he wanted, but never before had the hamster-sized cat seen him go through five different outfits in a matter of minutes and decide that none of them were what he wanted. If only his other pet were here, the cat thought with an internal sigh. He would know how to fix whatever was wrong.

Even though it had taken awhile for Chairman Meow to get fully accustomed to having to share attention with Magnus's other "pet", there were times when he found himself wishing that the blue-eyed creature wouldn't run away so often. Magnus seemed to go crazy each time that he did. (A/N: Yes, that is kitty logic. Please bear with me. XD)

"Are you even paying attention to me, cat?" demanded Magnus Bane, High Warlock of Brooklyn, as he stood with his hands on his hips and glared at the bundle of cuteness in his chair. "If you couldn't already tell, I'm in the middle of a crisis here!"

Magnus paced back and forth around the furniture (also for the 5th time that day), looking ready to rip his sparkling black spikes of hair right out of his head. For the past week he had dreamed of this day, quite literally in fact, and found himself nearing a nervous breakdown as a result. Though there were very little details in the dreams as to what exactly was going to happen, Magnus was certain that it was going to be something special. Incredibly special.

But of course, what day spent with Alec wasn't incredibly special?

"Oh, Alec darling," he moaned, pressing both hands over the top half of his face before drawing them slowly down the rest, not caring that he was smearing his shimmering make-up all over himself. "Why do you always, always do this to me?"

He knew he was being a bit over-dramatic, but at the moment he really didn't care. A one-year anniversary didn't exactly happen to him everyday…especially not with someone he loved as much as Alec. Every time he closed his eyes, much like they were now, he felt the tingling sensation of his love's lips pressed deeply against his own; as warm and passionate as their kiss in the Accords Hall had been.

And what a shock that kiss had been to Magnus.

I still can't believe he did it, mused Magnus to himself as he opened his eyes and gave a very gentle sigh. In front of all those people….

Every whisper and gasp, whether by Nephilim or Downworlder, still rang in the warlock's ears even to this day. The knowledge that Alec's own parents were a part of the group that watched their shameless display of affection still gave him chills. Most of all, the memory of how Alec only pressed closer to him instead of drawing away, that courage and determination he showed just for him, was enough to send his mind reeling. It was a simply euphoric feeling.

"Meow?"

Magnus blinked, jolting out of his daydreams as he looked down at Chairman Meow who was perched on top of his shoe, his front paws propped up against Magnus's leg and his neck stretched up as much as possible.

"Oh…right, I still need to decide on what I'm wearing tonight, don't I?" he asked, reaching down to gently pick up the cat. "And don't you look at me like that. It wasn't my fault; Alec distracted me."

The cat blinked adorably, watching Magnus with wide yet tiny eyes.

"Oh, never mind," sighed the warlock as he gently stroked Chairman Meow's head. "I'm getting ready now."

He lightly set the small animal back on the chair before scurrying back into his bedroom, tearing his closet apart as he struggled to settle on an outfit. While he didn't know exactly what Alec had planned for the evening—all he had told Magnus was that he wanted to take him somewhere—it made it that much more difficult to know how to dress.

"Really, that just wasn't even fair," he muttered to himself, tearing various articles of clothing from his closet and tossing them towards the bed. "He needs to be more specific with things like this!"

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Too be continued, promise! XD By the way, as it is still early on in the game, I'd love to hear some suggestions as to what you all might like to see happen. I have a few specific things in mind, of course, but I don't want to be the only one who has a say in their special night. XD So please, feel free to post your suggestions in a review or PM or whatever method suits you best. ^.^ Thanks so much for reading.