From where Alec stood on the roof of Hotel Dumort he had a panoramic view of New York, and with his enhanced vision he could see in detail that should not have been possible. He could sense the life of the city that he had called his home for so many years, and yet knew so little about. For shadow hunters their true home was always Idris, and perhaps that was the reason why Alec's parents had never felt the need to immerse him into any aspect of New York, instead content to keep him isolated within the Institute. That was all done with now, and Alec could feel a sense of freedom he had never imagined before. Of course this liberty did not come without a price, as Alec was aware of how much he had lost, in fact everything he had held dear in his past life was gone, but he was finding that he was able to fill this emptiness with infinite possibilities. Alec was aware that he could have all of eternity to live, and this thought both exhilarated and terrified him, as he had never before lived with such boundless potential. Of course there were still the immediate issues at hand, as nothing had been heard from Jonathan Morgenstern yet, and Alec suspected it was only a matter of time before he showed up again. Although technically a shadow hunter problem, Alec was not going to step back from matters involving the demonic Nephilim, as Alec had explained to Raphael, he was still the man that killed his little brother, and regardless of what Alec's life entailed now, he would make sure Jonathan suffered for the taking of an innocent life.

"I half expected you to not be here," Raphael said softly, cutting through the silence that had been enveloping Alec.

Alec knew exactly what the older vampire was talking about, as it was the night Magnus was leaving New York, for what the warlock announced was forever. Raphael had told Alec he was busy for the first half of the evening, but the newborn was aware that Raphael was simply giving him the opportunity to see Magnus one last time.

"Did you really think I would go running back to him?" Alec asked, although his voice remained light, seeming to be slightly amused at Raphael's insecurity; there were few people who could affect Raphael so strongly. "I'd much prefer to stay here," Alec continued, smiling at Raphael shyly.

"I am very glad to hear that, Alexander," Raphael said as he walked over to Alec. "I hear that the daylighter has not visited Bane. I have no idea how you managed to reason with him."

"He already knew he didn't want to be changed back, he just didn't want to admit it," Alec said with a shrug.

"He could have fooled me," Raphael said with a slight frown.

"Do you still have him listed as an enemy of the clan?" Alec asked, and Raphael instantly saw the concern in the newborn's eyes.

"No, I have stated he is no longer a threat, however he shall not be welcome here."

"Thank you," Alec said, knowing that he had been the one to influence Raphael's decision.

"I have found you to be a good judge of character, so if you believe he is not an enemy, than I suppose he is not dangerous," Raphael said, although his business tone was starting to slip away, as it always did around Alec. "Come now, I do not wish to discuss the clan, we can speak of such matters at any time, and right now we are alone," Raphael said as he stood next to Alec and looked out over the city.

"It's a beautiful view. I thought I would see more of the flaws of the city like this, but…well I guess I never really cared about this city that much, it's only now that it's become my home," Alec said honestly.

"Do you believe it was worth it?" Raphael asked, his tone becoming more somber, and Alec looked at him in confusion. "Being turned, into a vampire. If you had the choice now, would you choose to be changed?"

Alec thought briefly over his answer, although he didn't need to ponder for too long.

"Yes, it's definitely worth it. I never thought I could be a downworlder of all things, but I seem to fit into this world much better, which I find the strangest thing of all," Alec said with a bemused smile. "Also it's better than dying."

Raphael chuckled at the last comment, and took Alec's hand in his own.

"I am very thankful you think that, there are many who would not, I did not share such hopeful views for many years."

Alec was still amazed at how easily Raphael would mention his past, sometimes in a brief statement, and other times he would give a detailed recount, and he rarely hesitated when Alec asked him a question about his life. Alec still found the idea that he was involved with the head of the vampire clan entertaining, as all through Alec's Nephilim life he had been a man to be afraid of and avoid at all costs. Now Alec was holding Raphael's hand whilst they stood together and discussed how much Alec actually appreciated and enjoyed his vampiric lifestyle. If he had been told all of this a fortnight ago, Alec would have laughed at the absurdity of it, but now…everything was different now.

"What are you thinking about?" Raphael asked as noticed the far away look in Alec's eyes.

"Everything…and you," Alec answered, once again focusing on the man before him.

"Should I be flattered that I was counted as part of your reflection of 'everything'?" Raphael asked, the slight curving up of his lips giving away his playfulness.

"You have your own category of 'reflection'," Alec said as he lent in closer to Raphael.

"Good," Raphael murmured, but before he could anything else Alec connected their lips, and even if Raphael wanted to, he could no longer remember what he was thinking about, as everything else fell away.

Raphael sighed in contentment and pulled Alec closer to himself, both vampires wanting to feel everything and be as close as possible. Raphael quickly took over every single one of Alec's thoughts, and the younger vampire moaned as he felt Raphael's tongue slip into his mouth. Suddenly Raphael pulled away, much to Alec's surprise and distaste, but the older vampire cut off Alec as he was about to protest.

"Do you remember when you were first turned, and I asked you to trust me?"

"Yeah, and I do," Alec said, his voice giving away his confusion over the question.

"I thought that perhaps you would desire to know that I trust you as well. That was not part of my obligation to you, but I do find myself trusting you completely."

Alec was silent for a moment as he absorbed Raphael's words, and understanding what a reserved man the older vampire was meant that Alec fully comprehended the weight of his words.

"Good to know," Alec whispered against Raphael's lips as he leaned down again, and Raphael was all too happy to melt into the other vampire, and be lost in his embrace. Alec knew he could not guess at what the future held, but it hardly seemed to matter in that moment, and for perhaps the first time Alec could ever remember, he was perfectly happy to let the universe decide whatever plans it wanted to orchestrate for him, as he couldn't imagine that with the surreal perfection that surrounded him, that anything could go wrong.

A/N So this is the final chapter, thank you for reading the whole story and for all the reviews! If you are interested I also have a story called 'Redemption' and I will publish the first chapter of my new Malec story 'Possession' within the next couple of days.