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Magnus hung up the phone and sat back into his chair with a deep sigh. He stared at the ceiling, motionless, until Catarina came into the room.
"Is there a problem?" she asked, looking up from the book she was consulting.
"The school just called. I have to meet Max's teacher after school."
"Did he get into a fight again?"
Magnus simply nodded and closed his eyes.
"I'm so tired of this shit. I'm seriously thinking of pulling him out of that school."
"Is that what he wants?"
Magnus sighed again.
"No. In spite of everything, he likes it there. At least there are warlock children, even if they have to deal with the other Downworlders and the Shadowhunters too. Where else could he go? He needs to learn and be with his kind, and I need to work."
Catarina laid a sympathetic hand on his shoulder.
"I'll take up the last clients. Go, sort this out. And kiss Max for me."
"You're the best," he said, getting up from his chair to get ready for the confrontation. Catarina would lock the office. His loft was just the floor above anyway, he could come back and work some more on their latest potion order if it didn't take too long at the school.
He portaled to the Institute.
In theory, the idea of schooling children from the Nephilim and the Downworld together was a noble one, but the people who had had it where nothing but optimistic fools. Who thought it was ever going to work? There was barely a generation between those children and the ones who had fought against each other, chased each other, killed each other. Magnus himself had spent most of his life avoiding Shadowhunters and hating them like the rest of the Downworld. How were they supposed to get passed this now? These children, they had their parents’ hatred and prejudices ingrained in them. He was himself guilty of inducing wariness towards Shadowhunters in his son, he was sure of it.
Well, Max wasn't really his son. Abandoned for his true nature, he had been found and raised by Magnus's friend Ragnor for the first three years of his life. But Ragnor had died, and Magnus couldn't bear losing track of the child, so he had taken him in.
He couldn’t say he regretted it, but it was so hard, and he had a renewed admiration for parents all around the world, every day.
He arrived at the Institute just as classes were resuming. The school wasn’t properly hosted by the old building, but settled right next to it. That in itself, wasn't it already an inequality? It was mostly for safety reasons, and because the glamour of the place was the strongest in New York and concealed it easily, but still. They had to go on Shadowhunters territory, in their home.
Magnus entered Luke Garroway’s office to find his son sitting in front of his teacher’s desk, next to another boy who had to be a few years older and whose father stood behind him with an incredibly angry face. Magnus winced internally.
"Sorry I’m late," he said by way of greetings. Maxi seemed both relieved and scared to see him, which was understandable given the circumstances. Magnus did not intend to get angry with his son though.
"Mr Bane, thank you for coming. I don't know if you know Mr Alexander Lightwood," he said, gesturing to the angry dad who shook his hand with a strong grip.
"By name only," answered Magnus.
"Likewise."
The man had a beautiful face and a beautiful voice but his son had punched Max in the face, so Magnus wasn't really in the mood to register that.
"I asked you to come regarding those two young men here," stated the teacher, pointing at the two children sitting in front of him. “They got into a fight during break this afternoon, and it's not the first time they've caused trouble with their behaviour. I think there are issues to be solved here, and that your help is required for that."
"What was the fight about?" asked Alexander, but his resigned tone suggested he already knew the answer. Magnus knew, too. Max only fought about one thing.
"I have to be honest, Rafael started it. He made a comment about warlocks not being trustworthy, and Max confronted him about it. Both of them used a disturbing amount of discriminative terms before they started communicating with their fists. A teacher had to separate them and heal them both."
They had traces of blood on their shirt. Magnus willed himself to stay calm.
"I can't believe it," said Alec, and here they were. He was going to demand apologies from Max, from Magnus, from the entire Downworld. It always went this way, and there was nothing Luke or anyone could do about it, about Shadowhunters entitlement and self-righteousness. Magnus saw Max tense on his chair and he hated that so much, but then he noticed that the other boy seemed even more nervous.
"Rafael Ligthwood, I can't express how disappointed I am in you."
Magnus stared with surprise as the man ignored both him and Max. He knelt in front of his son to force him to meet his gaze, ablaze with fury, that the child was trying to avoid.
"Rafael, I would like to know where you could possibly have got the idea of insulting a warlock based on his race, and how you thought it was okay."
Magnus retained a snort. He could point to where himself. But the child looked sideways, cheeks burning with shame.
"I don't know. That's... that's what everybody says," he answered weakly. It wasn’t surprising really, but the expression on the man's face was. He looked hurt and saddened by his son's words. Angry too.
"Oh, I see. That's what everybody says. Well that means it's okay then, right? That's what everybody says. Maybe you should tell that to your aunt Izzy too, and her Downworlder husband."
"You… You’re going to tell her?”
"And why not, Rafael? It's okay to insult a boy from your school who did nothing to you, but you can't stand by your words in front of the people you know? Rafael, do you know what else everybody says?" asked the man quietly, and Magnus had no idea what he was talking about, but by the expression of the boy when looked up to his father, eyes wide in horror and full of tears, he figured it wasn't something very nice.
"Why did you say that Rafael?"
"I don't know, I don't know, Dad... That's what the other boys say. I dunno. Please don't tell aunt Izzy. I lied, I don't care for Downworlders, I don't think their bad, I like Simon, please, don't tell them I said that, I didn't mean it, I'm sorry."
"You are the one who will explain to your aunt and uncle what happened in school today, Rafael. And you will apologize to them, but for now you're going to apologize to that boy, immediately."
The boy sniffed and wiped his face quickly, even if his puffy eyes and red cheeks betrayed his emotions easily. He got out of his chair and marched toward them. Magnus couldn't help tightening his grip on Max's shoulder, but his boy got up too, to face his schoolmate. Magnus couldn't quite believe what was happening, but indeed the other boy started to apologize, looking determinedly into Max’s eyes, even if his eyes were still shining.
"I'm sorry for what I said. I don't know why I said that, I didn't mean it. I don't know no warlocks but I have many Downworlders in my family and friends and I love them very much and I know they're not bad and it's not true. I'm very sorry."
Alexander Lightwood came up behind his son and put a hand on his shoulder. The boy was shaking, but he stood straight next to his father.
"I am sorry too, for this incident,” the man said to Magnus. “I know you have no reason to believe me, but I can assure you he heard nothing of the sort from our home. Unfortunately, I know prejudices and hatred still run deep in my generation and in their children. I am the head of the New York Institute,” he added, presenting him a card with phone numbers under his name, "Alexander Lightwood. You can report any incident of the sort to me, and I will deal with the concerned families. Again, please accept our apologies."
And then, the head of the New York Institute, heir to the powerful Lightwood family, Shadowhunter, and son, bowed before them. They bowed. Magnus was so surprised he wasn't able to utter a single word, and he watched, dumbfounded, father and son bid their farewell to Luke and left the room.
"I have no idea what just happened," Magnus said after a while. Max seemed just as surprised. Luke laughed good naturally.
"Well, you just met one of the main responsible and benefactor of this school,” answered the man with a far too amused smile. “He's the one who befriended Maia and Lilly, that’s why the clans run so smoothly with the Nephilim lately. He teaches to the older children too, occasionally. History mainly, and how not to repeat it."
Magnus nodded absentmindedly, only half listening to what the man was saying. That Alexander was already intriguing enough as he was.
Quite handsome too.
“What is it that everybody else says about them?” asked Magnus remembering what Alexander had said. Luke cast a sideway look to Max, and Magnus waved a hand, shielding his son’s ear from their conversation. The boy looked briefly indignant, but probably figured he was in no position to be demanding.
“He’s gay,” explained Luke lightly. “He adopted Rafael after he was left orphaned by the attack of the Buenos Aires Institute, and… well let’s just say a lot of people disagreed. You know Shadowhunters are… traditional”, added Luke with a hesitation that said he was going to use less respectful words.
“I see.”
Magus stared at the card in his hand and asked pensively:
“Do you think he would appreciate a social call?”
Luke laughed.
“You’re a menace.”
Magnus grinned and lifted his spell.
"Well if it is settled, we are going. And don’t think I forgot you had some choice words against the boy too, young man,” he said to Max before his son began to think he was getting off the hook that easily. Max had the good taste to look apologetic.