Eternal Slumber: An Alec Lightwood LS

Chapter 7: No Chaperone

It would seem that Clary Fairchild was alright. Although that warlock tried to have a demon do unspeakable things to the redhead, it had all been stopped in time. However, there was no room for celebration, as the funeral for the deceased was finally taking place. These people included the Silent Brothers Jeremiah and Micah, as well as the ex-Circle member, Jocelyn Fairchild. It had been a rather emotional moment for many. While Viviana mourned her two deceased friends, Clary mourned her mother. As for Alec, he blamed himself for the redhead's sorrows. No one noticed his struggle though, expect for Viviana, whom held his hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze, which he greatly appreciated. 

Now it was the next day. Clary and Isabelle were going to go to see the Iron Sister's in the Adamant Citadel. Viviana didn't know what to do. Despite having asked for an assignment, Victor Aldertree insisted that she had to get used to the 21st century before being able to go out onto the field. In other words, she was considered a liability until she got used to the present times. 

So, she walked around the Institute, unsure of what she could do to speed things up. As she did that, Viviana would bump into the eldest Lightwood- quite literally. It nearly felt like history was repeating itself, only this time with a taller member of the family. She really had to stop bumping into Lightwoods. "Omf."

Her body was about to fall backwards, when the raven haired man grabbed her by the waist and pulled her into him. "You alright?"

Viviana looked up, and found her face far too close to Alec's. Her cheeks reddened at the proximity, but was unable to find the strength to move away from him. "Y-Yes?"

The stuttering immediately made him aware of their closeness. Clearing his throat, he removed his hands from her waist and took a step back. "Sorry."

"Its quite alright, mister Lightwood."

"Alec. Just call me Alec, please. Mister Lightwood makes me sound old... Like my dad." An intrusive thought ran through his mind then, telling him to also mention how the title made him wonder if he had lost any hair on his scalp. Given his parental genetics, that was a possibility for his future. Izzy had recommended he'd use rosemary oil to avoid that. Maybe he should give it a try. 

Unaware of the train of thought of the Lightwood, Viviana nodded. "Very well, Alec. Then please, call me Viviana."

"What about Viv?" He jokingly suggested, knowing how used to they were in the Institute to nicknames. But then, Alec realized that this likely wasn't the case in the Victorian Era, and waited in anticipation for her reaction.

"Viv?"

"Yes. Like a nickname." Alec explained slowly, trying not to be perceived as rude. "Shortening the name... Its something a lot of people do nowadays. Mostly among friends, or family. Alec, for example, is a nickname, short for Alexander."

Considering his words, Viviana couldn't help but recall Aldertree's words. Perhaps using nicknames would help her ease into the 21st century. "Alright. I don't see why not."

He smiled widely, not expecting her to give in so easily. "Really?" For some reason, knowing that he was currently the one and only person calling him by this nickname, and with her permission, made him feel all things of things. His heart was pumping stronger and faster, as the core of his being was filling up with happiness. Alec couldn't understand why a little thing like this made him feel so much joy, specially given the past couple of days, with everything that happened during the demon attack. Yet, something about the 18th century, Spanish Shadowhunter made absolutely no sense to his soul. Her mere presence changed his mood in the most unusual ways.

"Sure." However, she didn't see the big deal. Nicknames weren't a completely foreign concept to her, specially knowing Magnus. 

Then, he looked around realizing that she had been walking around with no Shadowhunter following close behind. Aldertree really had left her to fend for herself. "What are you doing right now?"