"Magnus. I have to go now." I gave him a kiss. "I'll be back later tonight." Jace gave me a call saying that there were demons hiding out in an apartment complex, so I have to go on a hunt with them. Maddi soon came running into the room. The little girl is three now, and it doesn't feel like almost three years we've had her.

  "Daddy don't go! You'll get hurt!" she yelled. I knelt down in front of her.

  "I'm sorry, but I have to. I'll be okay, though. I've done this for most of my life; I'm not going to get hurt."

  "Yes you are! I know you are."

  "Maddi, sweetie. He'll be fine. Trust us," Magnus put in. Tears started to escape her eyes and I brought her close to me.

  "Don't cry. I'll be back for dinner. I love you." I kissed  the top of her head and picked up my bow. I'm not sure what she was talking about, probably just worried about me. It must be nothing. 

  Jace told me to meet him at the institute, so that's where I'm going.

~o~

  "Will Daddy be okay?" Maddi asks me. We've come up with a system where she calls Alec her Dad and I'm her Papa. Years of confusion finally put to a rest. Yet the say when she said her first word was definitely the best. Alec and I had gone out and left Blondie and Clary to babysit. While we were gone, Jace decided to mess with his niece. By the time we got back she learned how to say a word. It wasn't dada or anything normal like that. Her first word was "dead." Clary said she had no idea how that happened. Moral of the story: Only let Clary babysit when Jace isn't around.

  "Yes. I'm sure of it, and if he does get hurt I'll help him."

  "But he is going to get hurt!"

  "Sweetie, you're going to be doing that too someday, so don't always think negatively. You have to think like you're always going to return no matter what."

  "Will I have a the black things Daddy has?"

  "The runes? Of course. They'll make you stronger and better."

  "I want to be prettier!" I gave out a laugh.

  "That's my girl. That's why we have makeup."I've taught her well.

  "I want makeup."

  "Not yet. Daddy would throw a fit." She pouted and sunk into the couch. I laughed again and picked her up.

  Several Disney and Studio Ghibli movies later and Alec still hasn't returned. Sure, I worried a bit, but this happens all the time. The demon took too long to track or there were more than the expected. It's probably nothing. "Do you want to eat?" I asked.

  "Ice cream!"

  "Well, Alec is running a bit late. Okay, but don't tell Daddy." She cupped her hands over her mouth and nodded. She trailed after me as I walked into the kitchen. As I was taking a bowl out she gasped and ran out if the room. I called out after her, but she didn't return. Odd. Just as I took out the bowl, I lost my grip on it and it shattered. Dammit. As soon as that was over Maddi came back into the kitchen. "I knew it was going to fall!" What's with her and knowing everything?

  "What do you mean."

  "I closed my eyes and I saw that you dropped it! I knew it." Is she having visions? It can't be. She's a Shadowhunter, not a Warlock. It makes no sense. She must just be trying to act like a know it all.

  "Go into the living room. I'll bring you your ice cream in a second." She walked into the loving room as I used magic to clean up the broken bowl. There was no residue, like it never happened. I finished scooping the ice cream fir her and got some for myself. "Here little girl."

  "Thank you, Papa. Can we watch the lion movie now?"

  "Oh course." We started watching the Lion King and it was almost over before she spoke up again. "Papa. I'm scared Daddy won't be fine."

  "He will be. Don't worry. Worry causes wrinkles." It can't mean anything, can it? Alec is okay. Alec is okay, I kept telling myself. Now I'm having a hard time convincing myself.  She can't be right. She has Shadowhunter blood, not Warlock or Faerie. So when Jace came smashing through the door struggling to carry Alec, it was certainly a shock. Isabelle and Clary were trailing behind them. "Isabelle Clary! Take Maddi to her room and stay there!" Clary ran past me a picked up my daughter and ran with Isabelle close behind. "Jace! Clary the table and put Alec on it!" He threw everything off the table and placed Alec on it. There was a lot of blood. So much that I couldn't tell where it was coming from. "What happened!"

  "Isabelle was about to get hit when he pushed her out of the way." His old ways of protecting people will never change. "So a demon claw got stuck in his shoulder. We pulled it out, but I think it might've been poisoned."

  "I'll try to stop the bleeding. You go into my office and get everything with a label that says 'healing' on it." Alec thought it would be a good idea to organize my ingredients. Who knew it would pay off. He ran over to my office, and I started working in the wound. "Alec. Alec. Please speak to me." All the did was groan in response and try to say my name. His eyes we shut tightly, like he could shut out the pain. "I'll save you. You'll be okay." Jace came running back into the room hold several different jars in his arms. He put them all on the table and stepped back. I looked through all the jars and found everything I needed. I quickly put it all in one jar and mixed it into a thick liquid. I poured it directly into the wound and chanted. The wound started to glow blue, and I knew it was working. My chanting got louder, and the light got brighter, and I held Alec's hand throughout the whole thing. Soon enough the light started to fade, and you could see that the wound was gone. The fading us good, but if it stopped all at once then that would've been bad. Alec's eyes fluttered open. "Mag-Magnus?" he groaned.

  "I'm here. I'm here. You're fine now."

  "Thank you."

  "Stop getting hurt like that. You make me worry." He gave a faint smile.

  "Is he going to be okay?" Jace asked.

  "Yes. He'll just need some rest."

  "Okay. Thanks." I helped Alec off the table and brought him to our room where he laid on the bed. Jace went over to go get Clary and Isabelle to leave. Maddi was huddled up in a corner. "Hey sweetie. How are you doing?"

  "You saved Daddy?"

  "Yes. He'll be fine. It's time for bed. C'mon."

  "I know he is good." I put her to bed and left the room. Back in my room Alec was already fast asleep. I'll have to talk to him tomorrow about Maddi, but for now I need to sleep.