"What happened?" Magnus said flicking the door open. Axel drags a tired Luke up to the couch.
"He was attacked!" Simon answers Magnus and helps Axel put him on the couch.
"He needs a warlock. He needs you." Clary says before dropping on her knees and looking at Luke in worry. Guilt ate her away. She should've believed that Luke was a good guy.
Luke's head rolled to the other side and he went unconscious. Axel checked his pulse and was relived when he felt it.
"He's alive but barely. Magnus, he was bitten by an Alpha." Axel tells Magnus who looks at Luke in worry.
"Jocelyn! Jocelyn..." He screams when he wakes up.
Clary took Luke's hand and said, "No, Luke, it's Clary. Can you hear me?" Tears fell out of Clary's eyes and Axel kneeled next to her.
"Clary, listen to me. You have to listen to me. I have to tell you, just in case-"
"No, don't even say it, don't." She shook her head, not believing he will die.
"Listen to him, Clary." Axel said softly at her.
"No, you need to know!"
"You said he was bitten by an alpha?" Magnus asks Axel and he nods in confirmation. "Three, two, one."
Luke shots up with green glowing eye. He growled loudly.
"Oh, my God."
Axel pushes out of Clary out of the way and holds him down with his demon strength. Magnus left the room to get something. When he came back, he shoved something in Luke's mouth.
"We don't have a lot of time. It'll take a few moments to take effect." Magnus says to them. Luke struggles against Axel's hold. Axel flashes his turquoise eyes and Luke immediately stops struggling.
"Gotta love power." Axel whispers to himself.
"What's happening to him?" Clary asks.
"Random werewolf transformation. It's a side effect of the poison in the alpha bite." Axel replies taking a step back and engulfed Clary into a hug.
After Clary calms down, Axel left the room to help Magnus get some ingredients. Right then, Magnus enters the room in hurry and bumped into Axel making some ingredients fall. Fortunately, Axel catches them before they fall and gives them back to Magnus.
"The bark will stop the transformation for now, but Luke needs an antidote to stop the poison in his system." Magnus informs them, already starting the antidote. "And I don't have all the ingredients here."
"I'll go." Jace says walking in the room with a bloody nose. The right side of his jaw was slightly bruised because of Axel.
"Good. Clary, you stay here and help Luke. Simon, you go with Jace. Magnus and I will start the antidote. Got it?" When everyone nodded, Axel smiled in satisfaction. "Good."
"Phoenix eyes, moon salt, and Idris fulgurite. That's what I'm missing." Magnus says to the leaving boys. "One more thing. I need Alexander."
Axel glared at Magnus. Maybe he should go with Jace instead.
"Uh, why do you need Alec?" Jace asks him.
"Virgin Shadowhunter energy." Magnus replies looking at Axel who looks pissed.
"I'll call him." Jace says, grabbing Simon's bicep and he began dragging him away.
"Maybe after this, you could take away the word virgin in virgin shadowhunter energy." Magnus whispers to Axel, who breaks out in a smile.
•••
"What's all this for?" Clary asks Magnus, who mixes two liquids which glows in the end.
"The base for the potion. Continue stirring." Magnus says to Axel who is brewing the antidote. "We need to have it ready before your boy toys get back."
"What if they don't get back in time?"
"You can't think like that. I'm sure they'll come back or I'll do the alternate solution which isn't pretty." Axel reassures her. Clary sniffs and wraps her arm around Axel.
"Axel, I don't know if I can do this anymore. I'm an art student. All my adventures are supposed to be two-dimensional." Clary says making Axel snort.
"Who says?"
"Me. Look, it is one thing to draw monsters and demons, but it is completely different to see them up close and personal. I don't know what I'm doing." Clary looks over at Luke and a stray tear fell out of her eyes.
"Don't sell yourself short. You forget, I've seen you in action, Clary Fairchild." Magnus says adding an ingredient to the antidote.
"Jocelyn! No, don't... Wait, don't touch her." Luke cries out. Axel and Clary rushes over to him. Magnus was about to come along but Axel told him to continue the antidote and that he'll take care of it.
"Luke, I'm here. I'm here." Clary tried soothing him but Luke struggles up.
"Agitation only makes the venom work faster." Axel says to Clary and tried holding Luke still.
"I need to tell Clary." He whispered.
"Magnus and I will tell her. I promise. Don't worry." Axel said before using his demonic abilities to take away his pain. Luke gasps and began calming down.
"What did you do?" Clary asks in awe.
"The demonic side of me feeds off of pain and I just ate his pain away." Axel winks at her but then looked worried. He screams to Magnus, "The poison is spreading."
"Your suitors need to hurry." Magnus calls out.
•••
"When I first heard about your father, around the time he and Jocelyn first got together, long before the Uprising and the Circle, Valentine elevated the Morgenstern name - to be synonymous with virtue." Magnus said to Clary. Clary listened to him and drew at the same time. Axel was still working on the antidote while Magnus took a break. "But by the time my people came to know him, barely two years later his name had become synonymous with devastation. Your mother told me it was then she first saw the signs."
"He killed warlocks and they never found all the bodies. We'd all stood with the Clave for centuries." Axel cuts in the story.
"How could that not matter to him?" Clary asks, pausing her drawing.
"He was obsessed with ensuring purity of blood. Convinced that the impurities were a threat to peace." Magnus continued answering her question.
"He was the threat to peace." Clary states.
"Mad men rarely make sense. Mostly, they just hate and he hated the Downworlders, for the gifts that we possess that he could not have. He hated us enough to kill us all." Magnus said taking a sip of his drink. He offered a glass to Axel who gladly took it.
"He tried killing me once. Since I'm here, he obviously failed but now he's after me." Axel says making Clary look at him with wide eyes.
"Ever since my mother was kidnapped, and the Shadow World invaded my life, so many Downworlders have helped me, not even thinking about what it might cost them. How could Valentine not see good in any of them?"
"He was blinded by his ambition." Magnus simply replied.
"Why didn't the Clave stop him?"
"He was clever. He and his followers, they managed to convince the Clave that the Downworlders they killed on their special missions had violated the Accords in some way
complete fabrications." Axel clenched his fists and remembered the time where Valentine killed one of his friends. He made the Clave think he killed humans and blamed shadowhunter deaths on him.
"How could the Clave not see?"
"Shadowhunters believe in the Law as absolute. They could never conceive of one of their own going astray." Magnus walked towards Axel who was still working on the antidote. He hummed in satisfaction when he saw that Axel didn't screw up.
"My father didn't go astray, Magnus. He went insane."
"What happened back then is happening again. The Clave refuses to believe that Valentine's a threat. Nineteen years ago, their lack of vision allowed the Circle to almost decimate the entire Shadow World." Magnus said to Clary who pieced everything together.
"That was the Uprising?" She asked but she knew she was right.
"Yes. Valentine wanted to create a new Shadowhunter army. And for that, he needed the Mortal Cup. He knew it would be on display at the signing of the Accords as a show of the Clave's power. He seized the opportunity to accomplish everything he ever wanted.
Destroy the Accords, murder Downworlders, and secure the Cup."
"How could my mom and Luke be a part of something like this?"
"Jocelyn and Luke tried to prevent the Uprising. They tried to change Valentine's mind about Downworlders." Axel said, remembering when Jocelyn told her about what she tried to do to convince him to help her.
"Obviously, they didn't."
"Clary, if it wasn't for your mother and Luke, the Circle would have won." Magnus said looking at her drawings.
"Ever since I found out Valentine was my father, I wondered how my mother could be married to someone like that and why she stayed."
"She had to stop him and safeguard the Cup. Everything Jocelyn did, she did to save the people she'd sworn to protect. She took her oath as a Shadowhunter seriously." Axel said remembering the time where he was taking a mundanes energy and Jocelyn threatened him by saying Clary would be grounded because of him. Axel never tried taking mundanes energy.
"I understand, but how does that help me find the Cup?"
"Maybe Luke thinks if you know your mother better, you'll know where she hid it." Axel shrugs. He wasn't sure either.
"Then, tell me why she gave up being a Shadowhunter."
"Because the one thing in the world she loved more is you. She had to protect you. That's why she went to Axel. No shadowhunter would go to him unless they are desperate." Magnus said looking at Axel.
"She had to protect me from my father." Clary says teary eyed. Her mother gave up everything just for her.
"The lunatic." Axel says and shot up when he heard Luke grunting.
"Luke?"
"The magic's wearing off." Magnus whispered. After Axel fed on his pain, Magnus used his magic so Luke wouldn't be able to feel pain anymore.
"Axel, you can take away energy right?" When Axel nodded, Magnus said, "Try to give your energy to him."
"What? I can only feed on pain or energy. I can't give it!" Axel said giving him a look of disbelief.
"Did you try?" Axel shook his head no. "Try it."
Axel kneeled beside Luke and tried doing the opposite of what he learned to do his whole life. Axel felt a wave of exhaustion. "I can do it! It's working."
Magnus gave his hand to Axel so he would not pass out of exhaustion. So Axel took Magnus's energy and then gave his own energy to Luke. When Magnus felt tired, Axel withdrew his hand and tried his best to give his energy and not pass out.
"What are you doing? At this rate, you'll pass out!" Magnus said to Axel.
"I'll be fine. Just take care of the antidote."
Clary took off Luke's bandage on his neck and cringed at it. "It's worse."
•••
Magnus looked at Axel in worry. He had not stopped giving his energy to Luke and he was white as a sheet. He had tried giving his energy but Axel stopped ever time Magnus got dizzy. Magnus admired him. He probably felt worse than he did and he still kept going.
Magnus let out a relived breath when Alec entered.
"Go! Give Axel your energy. He's about to pass out." Alec turned to look at Axel and his indifferent face faltered. Axel was pale as a marble. Alec rushed to Axel's side when he almost fell backwards. Alec held him close to his chest and took Axel's hand. Like usual, their fingers were intertwined.
"Take what you need." Axel gave him a weak smile and he could feel himself getting better.
"Thanks, sweetheart." Axel told him and Alec almost scowled at the name but seeing his weak smile, Alec couldn't stop himself from smiling.
When Clary came and made Luke drink the antidote, Axel stopped and leaned against Alec.
"You okay?" Alec asked Axel. He still didn't let go of his hand.
Axel looked at Luke's and Clary's happy smile and looked at Magnus who smiled at him and Alec. Axel looked at Alec and he gave him a grin. One that made Alec's inside melt.
"Yeah. I'm more than okay."
•••
Magnus told Axel to help himself to the drinks and maybe deflower Alec. Alec was trying to clean the couch while Axel poured himself a drink. Magnus had left for the night, leaving Axel in charge of his apartment.
"You do know that Magnus can use his magic to clean that up." Axel told him, pouring another drink for Alec. Axel approached him and gave Alec his drink.
"You shouldn't be walking. You gave up a lot of energy. How does that work anyway?" Alec question him. He took a sip of the drink and scrunched up his face. Axel chuckled and gave him a shrug.
"I feed on energy or pain but I prefer sexual energy." Axel gave Alec's lip a quick glance and then looked up to his eyes. "Magnus told me to try and give my energy and voila. It worked."
"Why didn't you take more energy? I barely feel tired."
"It takes more than hand holding to take great amounts of energy." Axel said.
"Have you ever taken my energy before?" Alec asked him thinking about all those time he could've taken his energy.
"Not until today."
Alec hummed in response and then Axel noticed Alec looking at his lips. His lips curved into a smirk.
"Thank you for today, sweetheart." Alec snapped his head up and glared at Axel.
"Can't you call me Alec?" Alec hissed at him.
"Nope." Axel said and then he took a step closer to Alec. Alec swallowed nervously because of their close proximity.
"You know for almost a century I've closed myself off to feeling anything for anyone because of Katya." Axel brushed his lip against Alec's. "You've unlocked something in me."
Axel cursed and took a step back when Alec's phone rang. He had been this close to kissing him.
"Hey. Hi, Mother. Of course." Alec says and furrowed his eyebrows. "Duty calls."
"Um, are you coming back to the Institute with me?" Alec asked scratching the back of his neck. He wished his mom hadn't called.
"I can't. Magnus left me in charge of his apartment and he said I'm in no condition to walk." Axel chuckled when he remembered how Magnus gave him a list of house rules.
"Stay for just one more drink?"