As Alec walks into the New York Police Department, the first thought that hits him is that this place is so much more lively than the Institute. For a simple errand, he’s decided to forego the total glamour, settled for only hiding his runes, as that is more convenient; Luke doesn’t have to make it look like he’s talking to something other than air, while Alec can just pose as a friend that swung by to chat. He almost fits in with his dark get-up between all the navy uniforms, and nobody really pays attention to him, which he’s glad for.
He slinks past the information desk, tips of his ears still subtly burning from the flirting debacle months before, then does a casual jog up the stairs to the first story. His senses are overwhelmed by all the noises and visuals around him - fax machines robotically spit out paper after paper, phones ring in unison from different corners of the floor, people chatter about cases and daily life; Alec has to constantly sidestep out of someone’s way, once or twice doing the awkward waltz where both people move in the same direction.
He manages to find Luke’s office after walking through labyrinth-like corridors, all laden with wood-paneling and illuminated by yellow-tinted lights hanging overhead. Everything here reminds Alec of those old cliche crime novels and noir movies Magnus has a soft spot for, even the ‘Det. Luke Garroway’ written in bold lettering over the rippled glass in the door. With a perfunctory knock, Alec peeks his head inside, almost expecting to find Luke in a beige trenchcoat and with a cigarette between his fingers, the off-white smoke curling in wisps towards the ceiling.
Instead, the werewolf is sat at his desk with his feet up on it, a cup of what Alec assumes to be coffee in his hands. When he sees Alec, he smiles wide, with a wave of a hand welcoming him further in.
“Hey, man, good to see you,” Luke says, setting down his mug and straightening up before shaking Alec’s hand, cold from the autumn chill outside.
“It’s been a while,” Alec answers, unzipping his coat and searching through the leather messenger bag hanging on his shoulder. “You should come by more often, Magnus has been complaining about you missing cards night last week.”
In quite a short timespan, Luke has gone from an associate Alec worked with out of convenience to a close friend and basically family at this point, an unmovable fixture in the Lightwood home. Through all of the harrowing events in their crazy lives, he’s been there from the beginning to the end, a loyal and dependable man that has stolen Maryse Lightwood’s heart with his steadfast strength and that charming smile.
Magnus has once told Alec over a glass of wine that he’s glad they’re all friends now, and Alec couldn’t agree more. Secretly, he and Magnus have been planning to ask Luke to ordain their wedding, but so far there hasn’t been a good moment for that; it doesn’t seem right to drop the bomb on him just in the middle of a case or over a quick beer at the bar.
Luke rolls his eyes with a chuckle as he accepts the files Alec hands him, segregated neatly into three manila-colored folders.
“I’ll make it up to him, I promise, cross my heart and all that.”
He starts thumbing through the files, eyes flicking over lines of text and attached photos; Alec watches him for a bit, perched on the edge of his desk, but finds it awkward to stare so his gaze starts to wander about the office.
He’s not here often, so he takes in the dark decor, the other desk he passed earlier, much less cluttered than Luke’s, a brown leather jacket draped over the back of the swivel chair. The din and chaos of the station are subdued here, reduced to a steady murmur; the fan above their heads makes a soft noise each time it turns, just lazily pushing the warm air around.
“How’s Maryse?” Luke inquires, aiming for casualness, but missing the ballpark entirely; Alec knows how much time these two have been spending together lately, going on small little dates, holding hands when nobody is looking, and eating dinner together during Luke’s breaks at the precinct. And Alec’s glad for it, he really is, as he hasn’t seen his mom this happy in what feels like forever. When she smiles now, she glows, radiant and more beautiful than when she ever was with Robert.
She’s in love and how does Alec know that? He looks at Magnus the exact same way.
“She’s good, although a little stressed.” Alec senses Luke’s eyes on the side of his head as he glances down at his linked fingers. “She’s filing for divorce next week. I’m sure she’d enjoy your company.” He adds meaningfully, looking up with a soft smile tucked into the corner of his mouth.
Luke smiles as well, pleasantly surprised with Alec’s words. “You’re okay with me getting together with your mom?”
Alec shrugs, running the pad of his thumb over the ring on one of his fingers. “You make her happy, so why wouldn’t I?”
The werewolf sighs, mouth slack as if he’s weighing what to say next, but it turns into a grin he tries to hide by looking down at the files again - Alec can see his eyes crinkle at the corners, the way they do when he laughs at his own dad jokes; when he’s happy.
After a moment, Luke closes the file he’s been browsing through, an air of seriousness hanging between him and Alec.
“I’m glad,” he says earnestly and before it can get too sappy, he adds, “Also there are probably the most detailed mortuary reports I have ever seen in my career.”
“I’ll make sure to tell Izzy,” Alec chuckles, pride curling in his chest at the praise of his sister’s work. Since she’s back and healthy, she’s been working harder than ever before, picking up new responsibilities and basically becoming Alec’s trusted right hand.
“I’m gonna go give these to the evidence folk for comparison, be right back,” Luke announces and as he passes by, he cordially claps Alec on the shoulder and then the shadowhunter is left alone, yet not for long.
After a minute or two, the door creaks open again and a woman walks in, head bowed down in focus, holding a conversation with a person on the other side of the phone stuck to her ear.
She seems familiar, all tall frame and long brown hair - at first Alec can’t quite put his finger on it, but he quickly realizes she is Luke’s snooping partner. Alec has seen her during the Azazel case and later when they had to deal with the fallout from when she found out about the Shadow World. They debated how to deal with her having proof of the existence of NYC werewolf packs during the weekly council meeting and in the end, they’ve decided against clearing her memory (again), since it was just a matter of time before she’d be back sleuthing.
For the first few weeks after she and her partner were sworn to secrecy, they were monitored just in case something slipped out, but aside from bombarding Luke with tons of questions about, well, everything, she’s been staying low and not meddling with any more affairs.
“We have some suspects for the Harley case, but I can’t tell you anything solid before the analytics lab gets back to me about the substances found at the scene.” The woman - Ollie - looks up, sensing someone is in the room with her. Her eyes narrow at Alec and a mix of barely concealed curiosity and distrust settles in her expression, her whole body tensing up for a possible fight.
“I’ll call you back,” she barks out and ends her conversation. With the phone still by her ear, she moves her arm towards the holster sitting on her hip, gun secured inside.
Alec placatingly lifts his palms to shoulder level, just on the right side of amused. While it wouldn’t be difficult to move out of her aim with the help of his speed rune, Alec’s never been too fond of firearms in general, too unpredictable and destructive for his liking.
“I’m just running an errand for Detective Garroway, none of that is necessary.”
Ollie visibly relaxes, but that last thread of wariness is tightly woven into her posture as she lets her cell clatter onto the desk, choosing to lean against the back of her chair instead. She observes Alec and he allows it, only cocking up a questioning eyebrow.
“Are you a werewolf from Luke’s pack?” Ollie asks without any preamble; Alec appreciates the straightforwardness, but he can understand why Luke sometimes looks like he just got done with a six hours long interrogation.
Alec shakes his head with a quiet chuckle. “No. I’d tell you what I am, but that’s against the law.”
“Are you really giving me the old ‘if I told you, I would have to kill you’ spiel? I’m not-” Ollie stops abruptly in her tracks as realization dawns on her face. “You’re not kidding, huh.”
“Nope.”
Ollie is about to ask another question, undoubtedly one Alec can’t answer either, but before that can happen her phone starts ringing, the vibrations shaking the entire surface of the desk. Involuntarily, he glances at the caller’s ID which shows the name ‘Samantha’ on top of a selfie of Ollie kissing another woman on the cheek, one with darker hair and a wide grin.
She hastily grabs the cellphone and swipes across the screen, strands of hair flying into her face. The conversation is mostly one-sided, only interrupted by Ollie’s hums of acknowledgment; she doesn’t seem to realize the soft smile inching its way across her lips. As much as Alec tries not to stare, he can’t help but notice how different she looks with her guard down, how the caution directed at Alec falls away to reveal a gentler side.
“Yes, I’ll buy cookie dough. No, I won’t forget. Yes, I know I’m the best. Love you.” She hangs up and smiles sheepishly at Alec, caught in a moment of weakness in front of a stranger. “That was my girlfriend, Sammy,” She adds as an explanation, and while her voice is still friendly, Ollie stands a little taller, her chin tilted up defiantly.
She’s silently challenging Alec to call out her choice of words, to doubt her relationship like most of the world; Alec feels like he’s seeing himself in a strange mirror, all the moments in which he introduced Magnus as his boyfriend, held his hand and kissed him in public. He used to be scared, but not anymore - now he’s proud to love Magnus and ready to fight anyone who disapproves, shoulders squared and eyes intense.
“Don’t worry about it. My partner does something like this too, he calls me to make sure I ate something other than granola bars and coffee.” Alec says with a faint laugh, but this is more than a relatable moment - it’s two people from entirely different worlds finding a connection, encountering the intrinsic solidarity that comes with similar experiences. Alec might already like Ollie just a little bit more, no reason at all.
The atmosphere between them warms and Ollie pulls out her chair, sitting on it the wrong way around, forearms resting across the back.
“Oh, that’s sweet! What’s his name? Tell me something about him,” She inquires like an old friend, chin propped up on a palm and interest gleaming in her eyes.
Usually, Alec would cut her investigation short, but there’s a certain pleasure that comes from talking to others about how great Magnus is, so he indulges in it, more open than he’d usually be - especially to a Mundane.
“His name is Magnus,” Alec speaks slowly, picking through all the information about the love of his life that’s stored in his brain, from how many sugars he takes in his tea, through all the important dates to all the painful confessions. “He’s a little bit older than me, has a great fashion sense and is the most incredible person I’ve ever met.”
Ollie coos teasingly at Alec’s sappiness, then laughs when he rolls his eyes. “How long have you guys been boyfriends?”
“Over a year now.” Alec folds his hands together, thumb running against the smooth gold of the ring. It’s been a couple of months since Magnus has proposed to Alec and slid the band onto his finger with utmost reverence, kissing him breathless after.
Sometimes, Alec still can’t believe it all happened - turning to see Magnus down on one knee, his golden eyes filled with love and devotion, hearing ‘Alexander, will you marry me?’ and getting to answer with ‘Yes, yes, of course I will’, because there was never a doubt in his heart.
Alec shakes his head to get out of his thoughts and back into the real world before he looks up at Ollie. “You know, we got engaged. So technically, he’s my fiancé.”
It feels so good to say the words out loud, hear them ring through the room with pride. There are moments when Alec glances over at Magnus doing something entirely ordinary and the need to tell the entire world about their love skyrockets until he wants to climb the tallest NYC skyscraper and shout it from the top.
The smile on Ollie’s face grows tenfold and she draws a little closer, pushing herself over on the swivel chair.
“Congratulations are in order.” Head tilted to the side, Ollie juts her chin towards Alec’s palm. “Could I see the ring?”
With a nod, Alec stretches out his arm and Ollie lightly takes hold of his palm, turning it slightly this and that way. He’s almost used to it by now, after breaking the news to his closest people so many times, whether alone or with Magnus at his side. They compliment the ring and tell him how amazing it is to see both of them so happy, how bright Alec’s eyes are and how much he has changed. And he loves it all, he really does, preening on all of the praise, taking in their unwavering support and joy over his and Magnus’ prosperity.
Ollie admires the ring with a complicated expression, delighted yet wistful in a way, almost longing.
“I’m happy for you, Alec.” She tells him quietly, swallows around the next words. “I hope I get to be in your shoes one day.”
Alec’s heart gives a painful tug and he sighs, pulling his hand free to set it on Ollie’s forearm, squeezing gently.
“You will, I’m sure.”
At times, it feels like all hope is lost, but Alec now knows that it’s important to fight for his own happiness, even when the world seems bleak. Despite people telling them nothing could be done, he and Magnus didn't give up, didn't throw in the towel when troubles weighed down their shoulders. They’ve made it so far and they keep going strong, already setting next goals to achieve.
“The ring is engraved and do you know what it says?” Alec pauses for dramatic effect, a lopsided smile bright on his face. “Amor vincit omnia. Love conquers all.”
A comfortable silence falls across the room as Alec takes his hand back, once again starting to play with his ring, a constant reminder of his contentment, his home, the stability it brings. If someone told him that one day he’d be telling someone else that it does really get better, that dreams of loving freely are achievable, he would laugh and call them insane; yet, here he is.
Ollie sighs, eyes downcast and thoughtful when she rises from her seat, then wanders back to her desk. She raps her ringed knuckles against the wood and then leans her hip against it, obviously gathering the right words to say next. “Should I be expecting a wedding invitation anytime soon?” She quips, but there is a thankful note to it, an answer given without obvious words.
“I’ll try to squeeze you in between all the magical folk already on the list,” Alec jokes back.
Their conversation is interrupted by Luke, who freezes in the doorstep, at first just looking between Alec and Ollie as if he can’t believe they aren’t at each other’s throats yet, or at least haven’t started digging the trenches to hide in. With a short, pleased hum, Luke smiles to himself, crosses over to where Alec is to hand him another bundle of files.
“These are all the evidence reports relevant to the case. I thought they might come in handy, see if you can make any connections.” He informs Alec, voice lowered for the sake of privacy and Alec nods in response, halfway through putting the documents in his bag where they’ll be safe and sound until he can drop them off at Izzy’s desk.
They both look up to Ollie watching them conspicuously, clearly not interested in any personal boundaries as Alec has realized long ago. He and Luke share a knowing look and Alec stands up. “I’ll be going then. Luke, see you later?”
“You got it. Say hello to your mother for me.”
Alec gives a two fingered salute to both of them as he moves back towards the door. When he passes by Ollie’s desk, she shoots him a conspiratory wink, like there’s a secret only the two of them are privy to. As the door closes behind him, Alec can hear Ollie ask about his mom and the first half of Luke’s heavy and pained exhale.
It’s been a productive first half of the day, Alec thinks - he surprised Magnus with breakfast in bed, held a meeting at the OPS Center, met Maryse for coffee amongst all the other things, and perhaps the most important one of all: he made an unlikely friend.
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