We've come a long way, my love

Prologue

Alec Lightwood watched anxiously his bride coming forward, walking to the aisle with her sister Lydia Branwell ready to give her away to him.

He tried to smile at her reassuringly, but it was clear the younger Shadowhunter was absolutely terrified even if she was trying to hide it. Wendy Branwell had long blond hair braided with small lilac flowers and her big blue eyes were stuck on the floor, refusing to meet his own.

Isabelle, who had already met and befriended her, had told him she was a very private girl and completely different from her sister. More soft-spoken than Lydia but very much capable of holding her own against an experienced Shadowhunter like Izzy, it seemed Wendy was terrified by the perspective of marriage as much as him.

His sister suspected it had to do with their size difference too, seeing how much bigger Alec was than Wendy. The poor girl barely reached his clavicle on heels and as the groom received her hand from Lydia, the difference between the palms was hysterical.

Alec felt Jace shuffling on his feet nervously when Clary felt his eyes staring at her, but at that moment he had no interest in their problems.
He was the one with the scared bride and the perspective of a complicated future, but at least he could promise to be a good husband for the girl in front of him.

Lydia kissed her sister's forehead before going to sit beside Maryse and Robert Lightwood.

Izzy whispered something in Wendy's ear that Alec couldn't catch but the slight smile they exchanged was enough to tell him it was some kind of reassurance because some kind of color returned to her cheeks and she finally gathered some courage.

From the cushion Izzy was holding, Wendy took the golden bracelet Lydia had ordered for her and shyly glanced at her groom before softly slipping it on Alec's wrist.
The young man felt the chilly slender fingers touching his skin with a sense of finality as if everything was in the end becoming true.
The contact didn't last a heartbeat that Wendy was already retreating in herself, even her finding it difficult to keep her breath under control for the tension.

Taking a big breath, Alec turned around and picked up carefully the necklace on Jace's cushion, not even glancing at his parabatai in fear of seeing pity in his eyes.

He had suspected it would happen, but it was disappointing to see Wendy staying perfectly still on the spot, clearly not trusting him enough to show her back, and he forced himself to respect her space as he bent forward and clipped the pendant around her neck.

A delicate whiff of lilac and freesia tickled his nose as his thumbs brushed on her nape.
He hoped the anxiety wasn't making him sweat because Alec wanted nothing more than rip off his papillon and take a shower.
At least, even in the preparation for their first night together as a couple, he didn't want to embarrass himself.

"It is time for Alec Lightwood and Wendy Branwell to mark each other with the Wedded Union rune. A rune on the hand, a rune on the heart. A union is born" the towering Silent Brother said, touching the clear stone on the aisle where the rune appeared.

From the corner of his hazel eyes, Alec could see Lydia nodding to her sister in encouragement as Wendy stood frozen on the spot in front of him. Izzy passed the stele to her as Jace did the same for Alec, who tried to ignore the shame he was feeling in forcing Wendy to undergo this marriage with him.

Not that Alec had really forced her to do anything, but Lydia and his parents had been elated when he agreed to the arranged marriage to restore the good name of the family.
Wendy had been the last to be informed of it when her sister had already contacted their father to hear his thoughts about the union.

In a way, he was the last person she could blame for it, but he had the feeling the Branwells had been much more forceful than Robert and Maryse on her to accept.

With this marriage, the Lightwoods would return to lead the Institute, not subjected to other assessments on their work, even if the couple was the only one to suffer the consequences of their families' ambition.

He was so lost in his own thoughts that the burning of the stele against his skin woke up him from the reverie and watched the rune taking shape on his wrist.
Wendy's lithe fingers were gentle but firm, just like his own when Alec began to mark her as his wife, hands used to fight and defend.

By the moment Brother Jeremiah closed the ceremony declaring them united in marriage, Wendy and Alec barely paid attention to what he was saying. The male shadowhunter had refused to subject his new wife to the uncomfortable tradition of their first kiss, so he opted to peck gently her warm and smooth cheek.

Everyone present stood up and clapped politely as the couple left the aisle flanked by Izzy and Jace.
His parents came forward to give their congratulations just like Lydia and Alec wondered for a second why he had not seen his wife's parents.
But it wasn't the time to ask similar questions, Izzy was already leading the way to the hall where she had prepared the reception.

"Do you want a minute for yourself?" he whispered to Wendy, "You're trembling"

The girl nodded and left his hand, barely keeping herself together in front of strangers as Alec lost sight of her in the crowd of shadowhunters.