Alec Lightwood

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**SPOILER WARNING: Plot details follow. *Caution is advised!***

## Alec Lightwood-Bane

**Alexander "Alec" Lightwood-Bane** is the brother of Isabelle and Max Lightwood, the *parabatai* of Jace Herondale, and the husband of the High Warlock of Alicante, Magnus Bane. Alec is a responsible leader who cares for the well-being of his people and is the current Inquisitor of the Clave.

## Biography

### Early life

Alec is the eldest child of Maryse and Robert Lightwood. He is the older brother of Isabelle and Max.

Raised by a distant mother who placed a lot of expectations on her children, Alec grew up with a strong desire to prove himself worthy, to make his parents proud and bring honor to his family, and to follow rules and orders to the letter. He has had aspirations to be the head of the New York Institute since childhood. As a child, Alec used to sit at his father's desk and write memos in crayon, pretending to be the head of the Institute.

An experience from when he was ten years old stuck with him through adulthood. He trained with another Shadowhunter, Preston, but kept losing at kendo training despite his perfect form. Maryse pointed out that in his attempts to perfect his techniques, he became predictable, and thus needed to step outside of the rules and break form to surprise his opponent. Alec listened and broke the other child's nose. When chided by the boy's mother, he simply took it, knowing it would make his mother proud to see him accept consequences for his actions.

When they were around eleven years old, Jace Wayland arrived at the Institute and was taken in by his parents after the death of the boy's father. The two almost immediately hit it off, and they soon decided to become *parabatai*. Before their *parabatai* ceremony, Alec realized that he had developed romantic feelings for Jace and began to have second thoughts, but he was convinced by Isabelle to go through with the ceremony.

At one point in his life, Alec lied to his sister about being involved with a girl named Jessica Hawkblue.

During the absence of his parents, Alec was often automatically appointed as the acting head of the Institute.

### Helping Clary

During a routine demon-hunting mission—one not sanctioned by the Clave, much to Alec's disapproval—the group encountered a girl at the Pandemonium. The girl was later revealed to be a Shadowhunter unaware of the Shadow World. After the girl's mother was kidnapped, Jace rescued her and took her back to the Institute—another decision Alec highly disapproved of. He saw her as a threat and a potential danger, and he thought of her as a bad distraction for Jace. He became even more livid when Clary insisted on taking her mundane best friend with them.

To help Clary, they had to help her regain her memory. Their first attempt was by taking her to the Silent Brothers at the City of Bones. Alec grew more impatient with the number of unsanctioned outings and contact with Downworlders they were having. While exiting the City of Bones, Clary's mundane friend was kidnapped by vampires, further frustrating Alec with the situation.

Alec continued to call out Jace for his recent impulsive decisions regarding Clary. He demanded that they contact the Clave for help in rescuing the kidnapped Simon Lewis—Clary's mundane friend—but was easily swayed when Jace insisted that they could take care of it on their own, though Alec was still skeptical. They ended up having to sneak out of the Institute without weapons and instead gathered them from a cache in a cemetery. When they found that the cache had no bow and arrows, Alec returned to the Institute to get his and was contacted by Izzy, who sent him the location of the entrance into the hotel. Together, they killed some of Camille Belcourt's vampires before regrouping with Jace and Clary and, finally, saving Simon.

Their next attempt to help Clary regain her memory involved reaching out to the High Warlock of Brooklyn, Magnus Bane. The connection between the pair since their first meeting was undeniable, and Alec was both pleased and baffled by the flirtatious comments Magnus kept sending in his direction. Alec pointedly did not respond to any of them, as not only was he still conflicted over his feelings, particularly over Jace, but he was also not used to the attention and was still convinced that he should remain in the closet. When they summoned the demon Valak and were forced to relinquish a memory of the one they loved most, the memory that was ripped from him was one of Jace. Alec claimed he had been tricked, struggling at the thought of having been out, and, in a panic, broke from the summoning circle, inadvertently releasing the demon that almost took Jace.

When their mother, Maryse arrived at the Institute, she tasked Alec with keeping an eye on Clary, whom they both blamed for the trouble they were facing with the Clave for their recent unsanctioned mission. He trained with Clary, but when Magnus called to ask him out on a date, which he accepted, Clary slipped out. He found her on the way to her old house and accompanied her if only to make sure she didn't get into any more trouble, and they were joined by Simon. While he was distracted, Clary and Simon were taken by the New York werewolf pack under Theo's leadership.

Jace arrived, and when they failed to track Clary's whereabouts even though their *parabatai* tracking, Jace angrily blamed him for not watching Clary, and Alec retorted that he's blinded by his feelings for her. Isabelle stopped them from fighting any further, and moments later they get a call from Simon through Clary's phone and they figured out that they were being held by the werewolves at the pier, at the Jade Wolf. They went to rescue Simon and Clary and witnessed Luke Garroway become alpha, and get fatally wounded with Theo's poison.

Despite Alec's objections about interfering with Downworlder business, Jace insisted on helping Luke for Clary. Alec and Isabelle returned to the Institute, in time for Robert and Max's return. Jace called him because Magnus needed him to save Luke. Though struggling with deciding between following the rules and preventing any more dishonor from befalling their family, and doing what would be right, Alec eventually decided to go to Magnus's loft, where he lent Magnus his strength to be able to finish healing Luke. The pair shared drinks after the ordeal, and Alec ended up sleeping on Magnus's couch. Alec left in a rush the next morning.

### Arrangement

After Maryse returned from Idris to tell Isabelle and Alec that the unsanctioned missions at the Institute had shamed the Lightwood name, Alec felt that it was partly his fault for allowing Jace to pursue Clary, knowing it would break several rules. Maryse wanted to arrange a wedding with a strong Shadowhunter family to help restore their name and thought Alec would adapt and do as he was asked. Isabelle was against the idea, and insisted Alec tell their parents he would refuse.

Later, Lydia Branwell arrived at the Institute as the Clave's envoy. Although Alec did not trust her at first he began to understand her better after learning about the circumstances surrounding her late fiancé. Torn between duty to his family and his budding feelings for Magnus, he told the warlock about his parents' decision to marry him off. Magnus encouraged Alec to do what was in his heart and to be himself. Alec, after running the Institute with Lydia, knew that a marriage between the Lightwood and Branwell names would not only restore faith in his family in the eyes of the Clave—and therefore provide Isabelle and Max with a safer future—but it would also allow them both to run the Institute together.

At the same time, Alec discovered that his parents were members of the Circle years before and had kept that information from them. Angry at being lied to and realizing that his family's honor had been tarnished by his parents in the first place, he took matters into his own hands and set off to fix what his parents had broken himself. Alec therefore proposed to Lydia, and she accepted.

On the day of his wedding, Alec, despite knowing he had feelings for Magnus, continued with the ceremony, thinking it was the right thing even after a last-minute confrontation between him and Magnus. However, Alec finally acknowledged that marrying Lydia when he would never love her was not the right thing for either of them and faced his feelings for Magnus by kissing Magnus in front of his family, friends and envoys from the Clave, effectively calling off the wedding.

After the halted ceremony, the Mortal Cup was stolen by Hodge. Alec and Jace teamed up to find him but was too late as their trainer had already handed the Cup over to Valentine. When they found him, Alec stopped Jace from killing him. While expressing his concern to Luke about Jace's state of mind since his discovery of his parentage, Jace escaped with Hodge, intent on going after Valentine.

Meanwhile, Isabelle and the others made an arrangement with Camille to get the Book of the White to wake Clary's mother. When Alec and Isabelle went to Magnus' loft to meet with the others, they walked in just as Camille kissed Magnus. Camille teased them about Alec's mortality in an evident attempt to drive a wedge between them. After getting the draft of the Writ of Transmutation, Camille led the group to her apartment for the book.

Just as the group found the book, Valentine and his followers arrived, and Alec and the others were quickly surrounded and disarmed. Alec and Isabelle were held by one of Valentine's men as Jace was given an ultimatum from Valentine: fight and watch his friends die, or join him and his friends live. Jace left with Valentine through a Portal, and when Clary rushed after him in hopes of stopping Jace, Alec grabbed her before she could risk killing herself by stepping through a Portal with no idea of its destination.

The group went back to the Institute in preparation to wake Clary's mother. While Alec had previously dismissed Camille's comments about his budding relationship with Magnus, he made it known that the thought stuck with him, bringing up in a conversation with Magnus that he felt that Camille was right and that Magnus would watch those he loved grow old and die.

### Hunt for Jace

After Jace left with Valentine, Alec's efforts to look for Valentine and rescue Jace were cut short when Lydia was replaced by Victor Aldertree as the head of the Institute. Not being able to feel him through their *parabatai* bond further frustrated him, causing Alec to lash out at everyone around him; even those who were only looking out for him, including Magnus. When Maryse insisted that Alec forget about Jace, he accused her of only wanting to protect herself and her deteriorating reputation by giving up on Jace so easily.

Alec apologized to Magnus for the way he'd acted, and the two prepared to locate Jace together. Right before they began, Alec felt Jace, whose return to land made it possible for Alec to feel his presence again. Alec returned to the Institute, and he and Isabelle insisted on going out to find him, but they were blocked by Aldertree and the guards because of their closeness to Jace and the situation. Meanwhile, Jocelyn tracked Jace and was prepared to kill him before Clary intervened and stopped her. Clary approached Alec about her mother almost killing Jace, but he pushed her away because he believed everything that was going on had been her fault. Alec was further infuriated when Aldertree called a kill order on Jace.

When Jocelyn approached the Lightwood siblings with a way of tracking Jace by using an *adamas* stone, Alec initially refused, not trusting Jocelyn after her attempt on Jace's life. However, his desperation to find Jace eventually convinced him to agree, despite the heavy risk on his life. He was advised to "stay near the surface" and not go too deep while attempting to track Jace, where it would be near impossible to bring him back. Despite the warning, Alec strained himself; his nose began to bleed, his body seized, he lost consciousness, and he soon fell into a comatose state. Even Magnus's magic was unable to wake him and only served to keep him stable and prevent the weakening Alec from completely slipping away.

Magnus deduced that only Jace could cure Alec, as it seemed part of his soul had gotten lost as he attempted to track him, and his *parabatai*'s return would bring it back. Just in time, Jace had managed to escape Valentine's captivity and contacted them. Because Jace was still a wanted man, they made arrangements to meet at Magnus's loft, but were hindered because of Aldertree's interference. Isabelle then put a shape-shifting rune on Raj to make him look like Alec as a distraction, though this ultimately failed as Aldertree saw right through the trick.

Isabelle eventually struck a deal with Aldertree, that should he allow them to try to save Alec, she would deliver Jace to him. The team was successful, and Jace made it to Alec just before Alec completely faded away. Jace's presence brought Alec back, and the pair recited their *parabatai* oath. Just as Alec was waking, Aldertree and the other Shadowhunters arrived to arrest Jace, leaving a barely recovered Alec confused and upset.

### Possessed

Alec was quick to get back on his feet after Jace's capture. When Luke called their attention for a case of a demon attack they got a call for at the NYPD, Alec was paired with Clary to investigate the immediate area. With a Heat Vision rune, they were able to trace the demon signature back to a mundane, and Alec immediately realized that the mundane had been possessed by a demon.

Isabelle brought the victim's body to the Institute to study, unwittingly giving the demon access to the Institute. The demon-possessed Shadowhunters, and eventually possessed Alec, who still held ill feelings toward Jocelyn for her attempt on Jace's life. Alec, in his possessed state, killed Jocelyn, and when he regained consciousness, Alec was horrified and guilt-ridden when he realized what he had done.

Alec went to Magnus to get away from the Institute for a while. He eventually returned and was desperate to make it up to Clary that he agreed to accompany her to the home of the warlock Iris Rouse, whom Clary believed could bring her mother back from the dead. While in the warlock's home, he met Madzie, a young warlock. When a child began crying somewhere in the house, Madzie left and Alec followed. He found Leigh with a newborn warlock and asked about Clary's whereabouts. The woman showed no signs of knowing who Clary was, though she had been the one who greeted them at the door.

With some urging, Leigh told Alec that Iris regularly took her memories and those of the other women who bore warlock children for her. Increasingly bothered, Alec insisted that she take him to Iris's office, but the two were gone when they came. He searched the house for Iris and, upon finding her, confronted her. Madzie protected Alec, telling her "godmother" to stop, and Iris chose to escape and Portal away with Madzie, but not before reminding Alec that Clary still owed her. Isabelle and Jace arrived, and they found Clary safe and sound. They later attended the Rite of Mourning for the fallen Shadowhunters, including Jocelyn, and Silent Brothers.

### Budding relationship

With everything that went down after his cancelled wedding, he and Magnus never had the immediate opportunity to have their planned first date. At one point, Magnus sent Alec a fire-message, asking him to urgently go to his loft for an emergency. Alec rushed over and learned that Magnus had faked the emergency to get Alec away from his work long enough to agree to a date.

The pair proceeded to the Hunter's Moon for their date. They ordered drinks and played pool, where Alec later realized that Magnus had been letting him win. Things took a turn when their conversation strayed to their pasts. Alec admitted to not having any lover before him and opened up about why, and that he, having been in the closet his whole life until recently, didn't think he could ever have what he wanted. He briefly worried that Magnus would find it weird until Magnus reassured him. When Alec then asked how many lovers Magnus had, he was surprised to hear that he had been with at least 17,000.

Self-conscious, Alec grew quiet and thoughtful, thinking back to Magnus' loft after their date. Alec expressed doubt about their relationship, wondering if they were too different to make it work. Just as Alec was beginning to leave, he stopped and reconsidered, deciding that he didn't care about their differences. He kissed Magnus and the two decided that they wanted to put in the effort for their relationship to be a good one. At the end of the night, Jace showed up at Magnus's apartment and asked if he could sleep there, having been indirectly kicked out of the Institute by Aldertree.

For Alec and Magnus's next dates, the couple Portaled to other countries, including Japan, where they went to Japan and the Czech Republic, where they went to Prague. While in Tokyo, Alec bought Magnus an *omamori*, a Japanese amulet said to give luck and protection to the wearer, and gave it to him upon their return to Magnus's loft in New York. An intimate moment between them was disrupted by noises of Jace's own, and even after attempts of ignoring it, they had to ultimately postpone their plans due to Alec's duties.

Alec felt nervous about moving forward with their relationship and asked Isabelle for advice on how to know when the right time to have sex for the first time is. He noted that she looked unwell but she brushed him off and went on to encourage him to take the next step if he felt that it was right. Magnus worried that Alec would get scared off if they moved too fast, but Alec reassured Magnus that this was what he wanted. In the bedroom, they were momentarily halted when Magnus felt his glamour slip away, revealing his warlock mark. Magnus worried that Alec would be disgusted, but Alec simply found it beautiful, and the couple slept together.

When Maryse and Max arrived at the Institute in preparation for Max's Rune Ceremony, Alec, being the eldest male in their family in light of Robert's absence, was put in charge of planning the party. In an effort to get his mother warmed up to his relationship with Magnus, he asked Magnus for help in throwing the party.

During the party, a spell was cast on Alec, Clary, and Jace that played with their fears and insecurities. Alec's guilt over Jocelyn's death still weighed on him, and the spell caused him to hallucinate Clary blaming him for it, voicing what he feared about the incident. It drove him to attempt to let himself fall from the roof of Magnus' apartment, but Magnus arrived just in time to stop him.

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### The Soul-Sword

After Magnus sent Iris to the Clave, and Jace and Clary revealed what Valentine's plan with the Soul-Sword was, Alec showed signs of worrying for Magnus and the other Downworlders that lived in New York, taking responsibility for their safety. He was also worried about Isabelle, and went to Aldertree, confronting him about how she hadn't been acting the same since the mission to the Iron Sisters. Through Magnus, he learned that Isabelle had been seeing Raphael for vampire venom. Out of fear for his sister, Alec got angry at Magnus for not letting him know about the *yin fen*, although Magnus himself had not known and told him as soon as he did. Alec immediately went to the Dumort to talk to Raphael and began to fight him. Magnus had to stop Alec's fist with his magic to hold him back. He tried to get Isabelle to leave with him, however, she refused, and claimed he had not noticed anything was wrong with her in the first place.

When he returned to the Institute, the wards had been breached. As Alec and his team approached the entrance to the Institute, he found Madzie, who had been taken by Valentine and manipulated by him. He approached her carefully, and before using her gills, her warlock mark, to suck the oxygen out of the air and killing the Shadowhunters, she knocked Alec into a nearby elevator and closed the door to keep him safe.

Alec and Aldertree worked together to get to the Institute's roof, where they would be able to manually shut off the Institute's lightning power core. Alec accused Aldertree of not caring if the Downworlders were destroyed. Aldertree told Alec about a werewolf he was in love with when he was back in Idris and how she attacked him out of grief after a demon attack. He was forced to kill her before she could kill him, and believed that because of their demon nature, a Downworlder and a Shadowhunter could never be together. While Aldertree continued to work on the Institute's system, four Circle members arrived. However, Isabelle also arrived and helped them defeat the Circle members.

After the Soul-Sword was activated and killed the werewolves, seelies, and vampires that teamed up in an attack against Valentine, Alec rushed to the location of destruction. Not seeing Magnus among the dead, he searched the entire Institute to find him. It wasn't until morning that he ran outside in a last attempt to find him. He felt a hand on his shoulder and saw that it was Magnus, and embraced him tightly in relief. He confessed to how scared he was not knowing if Magnus was alive, and told him he loves him. When Magnus said he feels the same, they exchanged a kiss.

### Repairing Relations

After it was discovered that Jace is a Herondale, the Inquisitor appointed him Head of the Institute. Alec expressed frustration that it was not given to him because he was dating a Downworlder. Jace, not wanting the responsibility, eventually assigned Alec as Head of the Institute, helping him realize a life long dream.

One of Alec's first orders of business was to establish a Cabinet during which Downworlders and Shadowhunters could meet to discuss events and work together against threats like Valentine. He promised them total transparency.

While Alec worked on this Cabinet to rebuild relations between Downworlders and Shadowhunters, his relationship with Magnus was going through some changes. After switching bodies with Valentine due to Azazel's spell and being tortured by the Inquisitor, Magnus began to pull away from Alec. Although Alec realized that Magnus was hiding that he was not doing well after the events, at first, he dismissed advice from Isabelle to talk to Magnus, initially believing that he should have his space.

Eventually, after waking up for the fourth time in a row to an empty bed, Alec insisted to Magnus that whatever it was that was bothering him, Alec was there for him and that he loved him. Magnus opened up to Alec about his past, and Alec assured Magnus that there was nothing ugly about him and held him, causing for Magnus to stop hiding from his pain now that he had admitted it.

### Soul-Sword lie

However, the political strain was soon to change that again. After Valentine escaped while Alec was in charge of the Institute and Jace and Clary failed to catch him, the Clave sent an envoy to keep watch. Alec was certain his leadership would be taken away, but it was his father who arrived and told him he would get to keep his place as Head of the Institute due to some information he possessed that allowed him to get the Clave to agree. After Alec heard that Max got in trouble with their father, Alec pushed to know what it was that Robert knew. He learned that the Clave had lied and did not have the Soul-Sword.

Afraid that the news would cause an uprising that would lead to war and many deaths, he kept the information to himself and Clary, Jace and Isabelle, not advising the Cabinet members in spite of having preached total transparency with the Downworlders. When Magnus returned from a meeting with the Seelie Queen and other Downworlder leaders, he boasted that he explained Alec's stance on honesty and that he had vouched for him. Unfortunately, word got around and Magnus confronted Alec about the lie shortly after. Alec tried to explain that he did not want Magnus to be in this difficult position of having to lie to his people and that he was trying to avoid an uprising, but Magnus was hurt that Alec had lied, angry at the Clave's unchanging ways, and scared for the safety of his people.

When Max was found injured in the Institute, Alec put the place on lock-down in order to find Jonathan, who had been hiding among them all this time. Worried about his dying little brother, Alec called Magnus who did not answer. He showed up at his loft knowing Magnus was still upset with him. Despite his best efforts, Magnus was, to Alec's dismay, unable to help Max. Once Max was safe, Izzy nudged Alec to go speak to Magnus. Magnus told Alec that as a leader, he had responsibilities, and he could not both have Alec in his life and keep his people safe. Alec grew upset, but Magnus still walked away.

### Final stand

When a rift to Edom was opened in New York, releasing a horde of flying demons, Isabelle convinced Alec to ask Magnus for help, recognizing that they needed the help of the most powerful warlock in the city, even though Alec was reluctant as Magnus had made it clear that he no longer wanted anything to do with him. Magnus agreed, making it clear that it wasn't for them but the greater good. After Izzy located the rift, they immediately went and moved to seal the rift. They fought alongside and looked after each other in spite of the state of their relationship.

Back at the Institute, Alec felt immense pain out of nowhere and realized that he was in pain because of his bond with Jace—that something bad was happening to him, confirmed when they saw that his *parabatai* rune had faded, indicating that Jace was dead. Magnus Portaled them to Idris to look for Jace and Clary and arrived just after Valentine had summoned the Angel Raziel, though they landed some distance from Lake Lyn. By the time they got to the shores of the lake, Valentine was dead and Jace was fine. Alec expressed confusion about his rune having vanished, but Jace made him look and Alec saw it was right where it should be.

Later that night, the Shadowhunters and Downworlders of New York celebrated Valentine's death together at the Hunter's Moon. Alec approached Magnus and asked if they could talk. In the alley outside, Alec told Magnus about how their fight affected him and that he didn't think he could not live without him, to which Magnus replied that he didn't have to choose between Alec and the Downworld like he thought he did. After their declarations, the two kissed in reconciliation and left the party together.

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### Reunion with Magnus

Alec returned from Alicante and found Magnus servicing clients again. Magnus confessed that while Alec was away, he was dismissed as the High Warlock of Brooklyn due to his siding with the Seelie Queen during the war. Although Alec expected Magnus to be upset, Magnus told him that he was elated because now he had the time to focus on clients and making their dreams come true.

Begrudgingly accepting that this is how Magnus feels, Alec told him that he was offered a position on the council but that the position resides in Idris. Magnus congratulated him and brushed off Alec's worries of moving to Idris by telling him that he's only a portal away. However, as warlocks are forbidden in Idris, Alec confessed that they wouldn't be able to see each other. Magnus answered by saying that it doesn't matter where Alec was because he would always be there for him.

Later on, Alec went to the hospital with Izzy and Jace to speak with Catarina in the hopes that she would be able to shed some light on the most recent case of demon possession by Lilith which affected a nurse called Tim Dempsey. While there, Catarina asked how Magnus was doing and said that he had been upset during their phone call because his position as High Warlock meant everything to him. Alec was seemingly stunned that Magnus hadn't told him how he had been feeling.

Later that night, Magnus and Alec played pool at the Hunter's Moon and Alec casually brought up how he had found out that Magnus was pretty devastated about losing his position. Magnus confessed that he didn't tell Alec because he didn't want Alec to see him in that way. Alec told him that he never had to pretend how he felt and the two moved onto talking about Alec's job offer in Idris. Magnus blurted out that he didn't want Alec to go and Alec replied that he didn't want to go to Alicante without Magnus. After their honest declarations, they kissed briefly and continued their pool game.

### The Ley Lines

Magnus asked Alec to accompany him to a party being thrown at the house of Lorenzo Rey, the new High Warlock of Brooklyn. Lorenzo introduced himself firmly establishing his new position in a way that irritated Magnus. Alec delightedly picked up Madzie when she ran over to them but before Magnus could reply to Catarina he had noticed tremors. Alec watched as a surge of power caused the Warlock’s attending to lose control of their magic dropping their glamours and revealing their Warlock Marks, he protected Madzie when an escape attempt by one Warlock via portal went wrong killing the Warlock and launching itself at everyone. Luckily, Magnus was able to disable the portal but was unable to identify the source of the energy.

Magnus revealed that he was sure the energy had been demonic and that of a Greater Demon. He believed it to be the work of Asmodeus and revealed to a stunned Alec that he was the son of a Greater Demon. Alec didn’t care who Magnus’ father was stating that it didn’t change who Magnus was. Knowing Lorenzo would be unwilling to let them back into his home, Alec helped Magnus break in whilst he successfully distracted the Warlock. Magnus later revealed that whilst it wasn’t Asmodeus it was a powerful demon corrupting the Ley lines with demonic energy later discovered to be Lilith.

As other Warlocks became sick from the demonic corruption, Alec came up with a plan to use the Angelic core to purify the ley lines. Magnus would divert the Ley lines to the core and Alec would power it through. Raj protested pointing out that by exposing the core, any demonic attacks during the process would corrupt it causing an explosion that would, at best, destroy only the Institute. Alec overruled Raj and began preparations ordering an evacuation.

Magnus told Alec he would be safer away from the core but Alec stated he would stay by Magnus’ side no matter what. Though Magnus was successfully able to divert the Ley lines, Alec found that he had to channel the core by hand, using his strength rune to pull the lever and purge the Ley lines of demonic energy.

## Personality

As the eldest of Lightwood siblings, Alec has a very serious, cautious and by-the-book demeanor, answering to the Clave for reports and missions, following every law and every rule. His strict moral code, for a time, compelled him to follow the law to the letter. He has a habit of being blunt and is extremely distrustful of newcomers, and Simon once referenced that his bedside manner is 'abysmal'.

Despite this, he is loyal to his friends and is fiercely protective of them, going along with his friends' missions to keep them safe even though he disapproves. Alec takes his duty extremely seriously and often steps in front of others to keep them safe, instinctively putting others ahead of himself and taking responsibility for and of others, regardless of whether he finds them agreeable or not.

Alec is gay but was in denial and reluctant to admit this to himself for years due to the pressure on him. Furthermore, his feelings for his *parabatai* and adoptive brother, Jace, gave him another reason to stay in the closet, as romantic relationships between *parabatai* are forbidden. This made him a deeply conflicted individual, torn between being himself and not bringing shame to his family. After meeting Magnus, Alec has chosen what would make him happy and is now proudly dating a man, and he has since grown more comfortable with himself.

While Alec can be harsh, he's also a deeply caring and affectionate person who won't hesitate to reach out to his family and be at their side when they need him. He's observant and will often notice when someone he cares about is going through something, usually expressing concern when he does. Alec has a tendency to take responsibility for things and blame himself, especially in regards to people he loves being hurt or upset, even if he had little to do with the situation in the first place. When something is wrong, there's little he wouldn't do to put things right.

## Physical appearance

Alec is a tall, handsome, well-built man with dark hair and hazel eyes. He is always clean-shaven. He has a large Deflect rune on the left side of his neck. His clothing style is generally conservative, and he wears mostly black, sometimes incorporates neutral colors into his wardrobe. With his role as the head of the Institute, Alec now dresses more professionally particularly when not doing field work, during which he would still don Shadowhunter gear. He also occasionally experiments with Magnus's clothing.

## Skills and abilities

* **Nephilim physiology**: Being Nephilim, Alec possesses a variety of enhanced physical and mental abilities granted to him by the angel blood of Raziel in his veins and also by the angelic Marks of the Gray Book. This includes enhanced strength, speed, agility, stamina, and coordination, which continue to improve over time and practice.
	+ **The Sight**: As a Shadowhunter, Alec is naturally and easily able to see through most magical illusions and layers of glamour over reality.
	+ **Runic magic**: Due to the angel blood in their veins, all Shadowhunters are able to apply runes on their skin without any real danger. These Marks, in turn, give varied effects that serve to benefit the wearer.
	+ **Use of heavenly weapons**: As a Shadowhunter, Alec is also able to perform tasks unique to their species, such as the ability to use and call on the power of angels for their seraph blades, as well as to handle any heavenly weapons or objects with effect, which would normally not work for other species. In particular, these are tools made of *adamas* and forged by Iron Sisters.
* ***Parabatai* bond**: Due to his *parabatai* bond with Jace Herondale, Alec is able to call on more strength in battle and is able to use certain runes or magic exclusive to *parabatai*. The runes drawn on him by, or shared with, Jace also give a considerably stronger effect.
* **Magic:** After becoming bonded to Lorenzo Rey, Alec was temporarily granted Warlock magic. When he got upset, he caused a bunch of rocks to swirl around him. However, the full extent of these abilities is unknown as Alec only retained his powers for as long as he and Lorenzo were connected, and as soon as their bond was severed Alec lost his magic.
* **Expert hand-to-hand combat**: Alec is highly skilled in armed and unarmed combat. He has overpowered Jace, Raphael and Magnus who are all incredible fighters.
* **Expert archer and marksman**: Alec is highly skilled and proficient in marksmanship and archery.

## Possessions

* **Basic Shadowhunter gear,** including: a stele, seraph blades, and other weapons.
* **Bow and arrows**: Alec uses the bow and arrow as his primary weapon of choice in battle.

## Trivia

* Before Magnus, Alec had never been in a real romantic relationship.
* Alec is portrayed by Matthew Daddario. Leonidas Castrounis portrayed a 10-year-old Alec, and a teenage Alec was played by Alex Eling in the Season 2 episode *Parabatai Lost*.

## References

1. ↑ Alec was 22 at the beginning of the series: [1][2][3]
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 1x06: *Of Men and Angels*
3. ↑ 2x14: *The Fair Folk*
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 2x03: *Parabatai Lost*
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 2x07: *How Are Thou Fallen*
6. ↑ 1x01: *The Mortal Cup*
7. ↑ 1x02 *The Descent Into Hell Isn't Easy*
8. ↑ 1x03: *Dead Man's Party*
9. ↑ 1x04: *Raising Hell*
10. ↑ 1x05: *Moo Shu to Go*
11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 2x18: *Awake, Arise, or be Forever Fallen*
12. ↑ 1x08: *Bad Blood*
13. ↑ 1x12: *Malec*
14. ↑ 1x13: *Morning Star*
15. ↑ 2x01: *This Guilty Blood*
16. ↑ 2x02: *A Door Into the Dark*
17. ↑ 2x04: *Day of Wrath*
18. ↑ 2x05: *Dust and Shadows*
19. ↑ 2x06: *Iron Sisters*
20. ↑ 2x08: *Love is a Devil*
21. ↑ 2x09: *Bound By Blood*
22. ↑ 2x10: *By the Light of Dawn*
23. ↑ 2x15: *A Problem of Memory*
24. ↑ 2x17: *A Dark Reflection*
25. ↑ *Beside Still Water*
26. ↑ 3x02: *The Powers That Be*