Brothers and Sisters

Babysitting

"You'll take care of them, right?"

Clary's words echoed around Alec's head on a loop as he looked around the Institute's library. It was a mess. There was glitter and paint everywhere, some of it some of Magnus' doing, Alec was sure of it. None of the surfaces in the room were clean, each of them filthy.

Alec blamed Magnus. Clary and Jace had asked him and Magnus to babysit whilst they went out for their anniversary, and Magnus thought arts and craft would be a good idea. Sienna, Clary and Jace's five-year-old daughter had clapped her hands before following Magnus in the table he had set up for them to use. On the other hand, three-year-old Caleb had not liked the idea at all. Whilst Sienna had taken after her mother, Caleb was every inch his father.

Initially, the night had been going well. Clary and Jace had left for their anniversary date, not before making sure that everything was okay. Given the world they lived in, Clary was still nervous to leave her children, even if they were safe in the Institute with Alec and Magnus. They had begun with painting, which is why there were paints and an array of colourful paintings everywhere. Both Sienna and Caleb had made hand-paintings for their mom and dad, as well as one for Izzy to hang in her room. Sienna was exactly like her mother, both looks and personality-wise. She was often seen walking into the kitchen to hang a drawing or painting on the fridge, her red hair streaked with the paint she'd been using.

It was almost midnight when Alec managed to get the two children to sleep, even having to tell Sienna the story of how he and her father became Parabatai once again to get her to sleep.

He had left the girl once she was sleeping, walking back through the institute corridors to the library to tidy before Clary and Jace returned. However, when he walked through the doors to the library, the vast amount of mess was almost overwhelming.

"How exactly are we going to tidy this before Clary and Jace come back?" Alec raked his fingers through his black hair.

"You mean, how are you going to tidy this before Clary and Jace come back?" Magnus replied, standing and walking to the cocktail cupboard that Magnus insisted they keep in the Institute. He made himself a martini before taking his seat once again.

"Mag..." Alec started before stopping. He listened closely when he heard a voice coming from another part of the Institute.

"They're back." Alec said, slightly panicked as he looked around the messy room once again. Since Clary had become a mother, she had become somewhat of a clean freak, she would not be happy with the state of the room.

Alec moved to start cleaning, but Magnus tugged on his arm, making him fall onto the couch beside him. Alec opened his mouth to object, but when he looked up the room was spotless, not a cushion or book out of place. He smirked and turned to look at a smug-looking Magnus.

"Hey, how were they?" Clary asked immediately as she walked through the door, Jace on her heels.

"They were great, we had some fun." Alec replied, double-checking the room for any spot of the mess that Magnus may have missed.

"Brilliant! I guess you won't mind having them all of the time then." Clary joked.

Magnus laughed.

"We'll be going to bed now guys. Thanks again." Jace said, taking Clary's hand and leading her out of the room.

"By the way, Alec, you have glitter all over your face." Jace threw over his shoulder as he left, leaving a laughing Magnus and a red-faced Alec in the room.