After City of Heavenly Fire

Extra: Bedtime

"Think it's safe to leave them?" Clary whispered, palms pressed into the small of her back, leaning away from the weight at her front, a weight that kicked inside her at that very moment.

"They're babies, not bombs, you can leave them unsupervised for a moment without them going off." Jace wrapped an arm around her waist and ushered her to the door.

"Not with Tessa and Will under the same roof."

Finding no sound argument, Jace asked, "Where is Tessa? Max went to their room ages ago but I've seen nothing of her all evening."

"Will." Clary said, needing to give no more explanation.

A door further along the hall opened and Magnus peered out, shirtless body a lean silhouette in the ochre light glowing behind him, catlike in the ease of his posture, the quality emphasised by the flash of his amber eyes complete with slit pupils. "Someone say Will?"

"Is he with you?" Clary walked towards Magnus, Jace trailing behind, joined at the fingertips.

"Nope, starting to wonder where he's got to, hoping you had him."

A shirt flew from behind him and landed over his shoulder. He slipped it on, turning briefly to smirk at the other, unseen, inhabitant of the room.

Magnus went to the bannister of the stairs and bellowed, "WILLIAM BANE-LIGHTWOOD!"

"The babies!" Clary squealed, achieving nothing but withering looks from both Magnus and Jace.

"Lightwood-Bane." The body that the grumbling voice was attached to joined them in the hall, disgruntled with his hair mussed and blue eyes brightened to a cobalt.

"Bane-Lightwood." Magnus protested.

Alec raised his hands in mock surrender, muttering under his breath, "Not what it says on the paperwork."

Jace grinned and then guffawed, laughing at a new sight that was charging it's way up the stairs.

Will and Tessa roared an unintelligible battle cry, sticks raised aloft and every inch of skin not covered in clothes inked with thick, swirling, black designs.

"By. The. Angel." Clary mouthed.

Magnus caught them by their sticks, ripping them from their tiny grasps and then looked at them with a gaze of half pride, half amusement, able to take in the spectacle now the threat of losing an eye had been neutralised.

"Hey! Give us back our seraph blades." Will pouted.

"Bath, now." Alec ordered, not sure whether to laugh along with the others or scold the kids for disappearing and returning long after their bedtime, "Or you'll get ink all over the sheets."

"I think we better keep the sharpies under lock and key." Clary smiled.

"You can't ever split us up again," Tessa pointed at the biggest pattern, one that covered the majority of her face, "We're parabatai now."

Will put his arm through hers, chin tilted upwards, friendly pride and arrogance indistinguishable from each other, "See, I've got the same."

Will's rune was nothing like Tessa's, they had obviously drawn on each other with no way of knowing what had been drawn on themselves.

Jace crouched and tugged back the collar of his shirt, "This, see, is a parabatai rune, it goes here and looks a lot different to yours."

Tessa yawned, "We're just practicing."

"No." Will said, "Who cares about a stupid rune, we're parabatai and runes don't change that."

Tessa beamed, she liked that idea. Jace scooped her up in his arms and she flopped against his shoulder.

Will tugged at the hem of Alec's shirt until he bent to his level. Will placed his hand on his father's chest.

"You're Uncle Jace's parabatai, aren't you?"

Alec moved his hand a little to the left, "It's here, the rune's here."

Alec hoisted Will into his arms and, for once, Will did not complain.

"I'll be like you someday, just you wait and see." Will poked Alec's nose.

"No you won't," Alec murmured, breath stirring Will's hair where it covered his ear, "You'll be so much better."