The Stars of Our Love [ Wattys 2017]

Chapter 1

Alec slowly got up. A hot pit of hatred burned in his heart. "I'm going to kill that..." Alec whispered to himself. He turned and ran up the steps into the room where he usually met up with Camille. "Camille Belcourt! Show yourself!" he screamed. A soft chuckle was heard behind him. Spinning on his heel, Alec pulled out his seraph blade and whispered its name.

The white light illuminated the slim figure that stood before him. He frowned slightly, studying it. No, he thought, not it. She. The girl had stringy blond hair that framed a thin, blood smeared face. Her lower lip and jaw sparkled with unnaturally glittery blood. Vampire blood. Alec could see her hands and white dress were tarnished with the substance as well.

He growled slightly at her. "Where's Camille?" His voice was a low hiss.

The young girl giggled. It rang through the air with an unnatural lilt, grating against the skull like nails on a chalkboard. The sound sent a shiver down Alec's spine. "Oh, silly, Camille is dead," she spoke.

Alec's eyes narrowed. This can't be. "Oh yeah? And who killed her?" His hand tightened on the seraph blade in his hand. The girl only giggled again.

"Maureen Brown. The same person who's going to kill you," she responded, her voice overly cheery for the words spoken. Then she bared her fangs and lunged at him, diving for his throat.

----

Magnus wandered the streets of New York, the first vestiges of grief licking at his heart like a flame. He had a place in mind to visit, but he knew it would be a grave mistake. It's over. I must stop thinking about him, he thought.

But no matter how hard the warlock tried, he couldn't get those dazzling blue eyes out of his head. He relished the thought of the shadowhunter's body fitting perfectly against his, lived for the lazy afternoons when Alec could sneak away and lounge on his couch with him, bathing in the warm sunlight. Memories of his and Alec's time together flooded through his mind in an overwhelming mess of love and heartbreak, joy and sadness, pleasure and pain. But most of all, anger. Magnus was angry, so angry. He drowned his own fault and guilt in his rage over Alec's actions. Why were you so human? 

The sudden squeal of a car's brakes brought Magnus back to reality. Dammit, I did it again, he thought in irritation. I must find a distraction. He looked all around him, taking in his surroundings.

The foot traffic had pulled him to the Faerie park. He sighed and walked to a bench, sitting down. It was Autumn, Magnus' favorite time of year. The falling leaves and dying flowers helped keep Magnus aware of the fragility of life. Nothing beautiful can last forever, no matter how hard you tried to make it so.

There were ducks lingering in the pond a few feet away, a pair of mallards that hadn't yet left for the south. A soft smile played at the downworlder's lips. "'Savage beasts;" he quoted to himself, "never trust a duck.'" Then Magnus lost himself in his memories. 

----

Alec just barely had time to bring up his seraph blade before she was on him. Maureen screamed as the blade caught her mouth. Blood ran down her chin, mixing with Camille's. She giggled. "Hurting a little girl isn't very chivalrous," she said sweetly.

Alec snarled. "You're no little girl. You're a monster. Simon should have let you die." He lunged at her with the blade, but Maureen was faster than he had anticipated.

The young vampire sidestepped and was behind him. She raked her claws down his back, allowing blood to seep through his shadowhunting gear. Biting back a cry of pain, Alec twirled around and brought his fist up, his knuckles connecting to her face with a sickening thud. Maureen whimpered as she fell to the ground.

Alec kneeled beside the prone girl. "Say your last words," he whispered in her ear.

She smiled up at him. "Goodbye." Alec frowned in confusion. He wasn't expecting her to sound so calm in the face of death. But he quickly figured out why.

Maureen jumped up and sank her teeth into his shoulder. This time Alec yelled in both pain and surprise. He quickly ripped her off and slammed the hilt of his seraph blade into her temple. Maureen crumpled to the ground, no sign of her fierce energy left. Alec stood over her, ready to drive the blade through her heart. Wait, his mind said. She's unconscious and unable to protect herself. "But she's a murderer. She's a monster," he said aloud. But she can't fight back. Alec groaned in frustration and angrily mussed up his hair. Blowing out a forceful sigh, he came to a decision.

Against everything his right mind was telling him, Alec left her. After he tied her up and made sure she wouldn't be able to leave, he stumbled down the stairs. Then he began running.

Alec hadn't had time to glamour himself, so he had to physically push people out of the way in his mad rush to get somewhere, anywhere, as long as it wasn't a place that would remind him of-

A sharp pain struck through his chest, and Alec couldn't tell if it was from his wounds or the thought of Malec. Not wanting to dwell on either, he pushed himself to run faster.

 People shouted as they were jostled around by a mysterious running figure but quickly forgot about him as their own lives and troubles invaded their focus once again. What seemed like centuries for the frantic boy passed, and when he was sure he was far away from that awful place, Alec stopped in an alley to put an iratze on. He slumped against the wall, barely grasping consciousness.

After taking deep, calming breaths, he looked at his shoulder. His whole right side was soaked in blood, a spout of it still flowing out. Alec closed his eyes. It's ok. You've faced worse. Then he took out his stele and drew an iratze. Even with his sloppy left hand, the results were immediate. His wound began closing. He didn't feel as lightheaded anymore, although the excruciating pain still lingered. 

Alec got up and stood in the alley for a moment. He was torn. He knew he should go get his belongings from Malec's apartment out of courtesy for the warlock, but the very thought of trudging up the all-too-familiar route that used to bring him so much joy and picking up everything he had left their was too much to bear. If he got his things, that would mean this was real. He and Magnus really were through. 

A wobbly breath escaped his weary lungs, a tear or two slipping out along with it. Then he began walking out onto the sidewalk slowly, doing everything he could to prolong the moment he reached that door. The heavy weight of heartache settled on his slumped shoulders, weighing down his already leaden steps. I've ruined everything. I should have just let Maureen kill me.