Malec Fic Recs
Something like six years ago I tried to read The Mortal Instruments books. I got partway through the third before failing out pretty hard. There wasnât enough Magnus for my taste and the Magnus/Alec storyline wasnât enough to keep me slogging through the rest of it. Then the movie was terrible too, and when the TV show came out I was like, âNope, Iâve been on this crazy train before.âÂ
Luckily, I donât live in a vacuum, and the odd gif started popping up on my dashboard. People seemed genuinely impressed with how the TV show was adapting the source material. I was bored over a weekend and decided to give it a shot. Boy, am I glad I was, because three days later I was completely caught up and making my way through the Magnus/Alec tag on AO3.
Here's the inevitable rec post thatâs resulted.
Pillow talk by lachese
Alec Lightwood falls in love, one nap at a time.Â
wrong in the dark by sarcasticfluentry
After Magnus crashes Alecâs wedding and Lydia is attacked, the Institute goes on lockdown. Magnus stays the night in Alecâs room.
this type of mine by thisissirius
alec and magnus have a bond. itâs probably going to be telepathic. or the one where the lightwoods are put on trial in more ways than one and alec slowly falls in love with magnus one day at a time.
until we go down by leraiel
âAlecâs been taken -â
Magnus stands, hearing only those three words, frozen - trying to process. He attempts to compose himself; he is centuries old - the most powerful warlock in Brooklyn and perhaps even further. The wine glass, held usually with such a sure elegant grip, smashes to the ground. It cuts through the roaring sea of shock.
âHow did this happen?â He struggles not to lash out in blame at dear Clary. She was innocent - save it, he warns himself.
A Perfect Arrangement by KouriArashi
To keep the peace between the Shadowhunters and the Downworlders, a treaty designates an intermarriage between the two groups every seven years. Alec isnât exactly happy to be chosen, but then he finds out that his intended is nothing like what anyone expected.Â
Never Stand Between Two Mirrors by oncethrown
Alec has enough on his plate right now. His parents are furious at him, Magnus Bane is making him feel things heâs trying so hard not to feel, his wedding is coming up, and his world is breaking apart.
What he doesnât need is a fussy mundane version on himself showing up in the Institute basement. What he doesnât need is Magnus telling him that theyâll just have to wait for Seelie Magic to suck that version of himself back to his own dimension.
But since when does Alec get what he needs?
Alternate Dimension Alec gets trapped in the Shadowhunter reality at some point after the âI know you feel what I feelâ scene. The gang desperately tries to stop chaos from ensuing.
The Diary of River Song by DemiraWatson
Magnus first meets Alexander on a veranda outside a glittering spectacular ball in 1852.
Alexander first meets Magnus at a Downworlder rave in 2016.
Dark Horse by neonnex
As clichĂŠ as it sounds, timing truly can be everything. What if Alec hadnât had a chance to propose to Lydia yet? What if Isabelle figured out what was going on much sooner and was the one to try and help Hodge when the Institute was breached? What if Hodge was knocked out and she was left alone to fend off the Forsaken? What if she took a crushing blow that left her unable to fight back and Magnus was the one who ended up saving her life? And not just once, but yet again when they realize that Isabelle has been poisoned and needs his magical expertise in order to save her?
Timing can be everything, and yet somehow, things are still just as complicated for Alec.
Hold Onto Me (Cause Iâm a Little Unsteady) by MagnificentlyMagic
His parabatai rune was burning, not with death, or injury, but with betrayal.
Post Ep 9.
Anything You Say by milobinderminder - WIP
Detective Alec Lightwood likes his job. He likes the order of it, likes helping people, likes that he gets to work with Jace and that Izzy is always right downstairs in the morgue too. Heâs wanted to be a cop ever since he was a kid, just like his parents before him, and now heâs living that dream. His life should be perfect.
Thereâs just one problem. Their precinct has just gotten a new forensic expert â Magnus Bane.
And honestly, heâs so cute that Alecâs kind of losing his mind.
The Hanged Man by LittleDarlingXOX
An alternate ending of episode 1x12 âMalecâ and moving into episode 1x13 âMorning Starâ. It isnât just the cup thatâs stolen from the institute on the night of the wedding. Valentine has plans to reunite his family, whatever the cost, and Alec just happens to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Home by redskyatmorning
A few weeks after the wedding incident, the Clave has Alec arrested and put on trial to have his runes stripped for what seems like no reason. Faced with exile, Alec must come to terms with himself, his feelings for a certain warlock, and the world that he was raised in.Â
my heart that you helped to build by oh_la_fraise
Magnus isnât what he expected. Alec had thought his soulmate would be serious, tame, and, well, female.
Okay, maybe he was lying about that last one.
Blue by Spun
Magnus is all about color. Alec isnât, though not for lack of trying. âIf you ever get fired from being High Warlock, youâll have a lucrative career as the paint person in a Home Depot or something."Â
Appassionato by Chonideno
Alec plays the piano every day, with great talent. One night, a note slips under his door: itâs a request from an anonymous neighbor. Before he knows it, Alec picks up the habit of leaving his window open so his neighbor can listen to him. Requests keep coming. Slowly, two strangers start a conversation without words and let the music do the work for them.
ever the years you wept by Pameluke
Magnus has lost faith, Alec has lost hope.Â
Fusion by prfctdaze
Magnus gets the surprise of his life when he walks in to Jade Wolf.Â
Glorious Technicolor by alittlebriton
âHi,â Magnus says, moving closer and smiling softly like he knows whatâs going on in Alecâs head, running his thumb over one of Alecâs eyebrows and cradling his jaw. âAre you ok?â
Alec swallows and nods, fingers splayed over Magnusâ ribs as he takes a shuddering breath at the contact. It takes a little while for the words to come, and when they do his voice is low and thick. âI never. I didnât think I could have this.â
Missing scene from the end of S2E07, How Are Thou Fallen.














