Hello all, first of I'd like to thank everyone who contributed a title for this sequel, I ended up choosing "A Darker Path", which A Really Gay Spider came up with, but still thank you for everyone for giving great ideas! Also, for anyone who opened this without reading "Darkened Path" I suggest looking at that one first, otherwise, you will be very lost, very fast. Thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoy this.
"Get it! Get the toy! Come on, you can do it!" Alec smiled slightly as he slipped his stele into the pocket of his jacket. It had been a grueling three months since he had returned to New York City. The elders in the Clave had been suspicious of his sudden return after so many months of absence and he had been forced to undergo several long interrogations until the Clave was forced to admit they had no evidence that Alec had become a part of the slow growing support for Sebastian and his work.
That had been nearly two months ago, and he had been cleared for active duty for quite a time now, but his mother was skeptical of his and Magnus' claims of depression and had kept him under close surveillance for several weeks and had refused to allow him back into the Clave meetings, citing possible health issues as the reason for his disbarment. Alec had thought she might do something of the sorts, seeing as she had been there when Jace had felt the first phantom pains, but was pleased to know that, after three months had passed since his child bearing, he was perfectly healthy. Not even his mother or Magnus could find fault in his well-being, despite all their attempts.
And now, finally, he was allowed back into the swing of things. He had loved having the time to spend with the twins and Magnus – he was seeing quite a bit of them, since he had moved into Magnus's apartment after his mother had dropped back enough to permit him to, but he missed the fast paced action that being a Shadow Hunter gave him. It would be immensely gratifying to be able to partake in a meeting first hand again, rather than getting the bylines by Jace and Izzy, who would in turn get them from Maryse.
Still, he was having equal problems leaving the twins for any long stretch, even if was only to be an hour or so. He hadn't been apart from them for long stretches since their birth and even knowing that Magnus was perfectly capable of handling their children was not helping edge off the sudden anxiety.
"Come on, Ginny! You got it sweetness!" Magnus' energetic voice cut through Alec's worried thoughts, and he was smiling once more when he finally entered the living room, and was greeted to a most strange and wondrous site.
Magnus was sitting on the floor beside a brightly colored quilt on which lay one of the twins – Ginny, Alec assumed from the little yellow dress the infant wore – and he was floating various brightly colored plush toys for her to bat at with her small hands. She wasn't quite old enough to grab the toys with her meaty fingers, but she batted them with an enthusiasm Alec didn't quite understand. But she was smiling widely and laughing as Magnus continued to float them closer towards her.
"What exactly are you doing?" Alec asked, finding himself drawn to Ginny's laughter. Magnus turned to him briefly, smiling mischievously as the toys continued to float behind him.
"I'm playing with our daughter of course, she loves trying to get at the toys. She still hasn't grasped the concept of pulling them, but she loves hitting them. Don't give me that look. I've seen you do the same thing," Magnus raised an eyebrow as if daring Alec to correct him.
"Of course I do. It's good for their development and stuff. But I don't float toys around her head. I hold them like normal parents do." Alec replied automatically, watching as Ginny continued to bat the toys, unaware or uncaring that they were no longer moving around slowly as they had been before Alec had said anything.
"Well, normal parents aren't nearly eight hundred year old, supposedly sterile warlocks or eighteen year old shadow hunters, are they? Besides, it's more fun this way." Magnus demonstrated his opinion by renewing the movements of the small toys, making Ginny shriek in glee again.
"Okay," Alec conceded, "next question, then. Where's Max?" The twins rarely allowed themselves to be separated for long periods of time, to the point that Alec and Magnus had given up on the two cribs and allowed them to sleep together. It was strange to see Ginny without her slightly older brother.
"He's over there." Magnus pointed towards the large windows and Alec saw the large wooden cradle situated underneath them. It was such a stark change to the living room that Alec was surprised he hadn't noticed it at first.
"Why has the crib been moved from the nursery?"
"Because Ginny was awake and Max was still asleep and it's good to move the cradle so that the babies can be exposed to new sights. Although, I think the little demon will be out for a while. He was up half the night screaming after all." Alec frowned as he turned to take a closer look at his lover. Magnus had insisted on taking the night watch over the twins last night, despite Alec's protests, going so far to even put silencing spells around the nursery that only he was tuned into.
The effects of the night were evident in Magnus's face, if one knew how to look for them. His eyes were clouded slightly, nearly green rather than the golden-green Alec had grown accustomed to, and guilt hit him. He knew Magnus had been trying to make up for the months that Alec was alone but all of that was made up the moment Magnus came to find him, and all this pushing for Alec to relax and allow Magnus to do all the hard work was getting ridiculous.
"I'll take the twins when I get home," Alec promised, bending down to place a small kiss on the corner of Magnus's lips. He shushed him quietly when he opened his mouth to protest, "You're exhausted, as soon as I get home, you're going to bed. No exceptions." He added as Magnus tried again to argue. Alec kissed him gently for a moment, his arms wrapping around Magnus' upturned neck as he pressed himself against his lover.
"You kiss me like that more often, doll, and I'll do whatever you say."Alec blushed deeply and swatted Magnus's shoulder, annoyed.
"Stop calling me that," he demanded, grinned and wrapped his arms around Alec's slim waist, pulling him down onto his lap.
"I have to go," Alec murmured against Magnus's lips, all irritation seemingly disappearing as Magnus ran his hands under Alec's black shirt and pushed against the small of Alec's back.
"Magnus," he protested slightly, squirming in Magnus's tight embrace. Magnus kissed him solidly in response, cutting off all of Alec's protests effectively. The kiss was cut short by a loud fussing emerging from the cradle. Alec pulled hastily away from Magnus, blushing furiously as he heard Magnus swear under his breath.
"I swear that boy has an innate radar for when we kiss," he added as Alec went to comfort the fussy baby. Max always seemed to cry at the exact moment that Alec and Magnus embraced and while Alec was mostly embarrassed by the idea that his child knew what his parents were doing, Magnus was distinctly annoyed.
Ginny, for her part, was laying down where Magnus had put her, reaching out for one of the toys that had fallen beside her. "You know," Magnus called out conversationally as he watched her small fingers pull and prod at the stuffed bear she was playing with, "I think she's almost got the idea of using her hands to grab the toys."
"Good for her," Alec called back, "I'm glad one of the twins is using their fingers productively." He added as he scowled down at the small baby inside of the cradle. Much to Alec's consternation, Max, the fussier of the two babies, had found a way to calm himself while his fathers were occupied.
"He's still doing it, then?" Magnus asked, the amusement clear in his tone, "I don't know what the big deal is. He likes it, it soothes him, and sometimes doing it gets him back to sleep at night, which we both know is a blessing." Alec made a face at Magnus.
"Because in two years' time it's going to be hell getting him to stop." He replied, reaching down and picking the small baby up. Max smiled sleepily up at his father, his lips forming around the small thumb he was sucking on gleefully.
"It's not going to be any harder to get Ginny off her pacifier." Magnus reasoned practically, offering a bottle towards Alec.
"You can take a pacifier away. You can't really get rid of a thumb," Alec replied, accepting the warmed milk and gently coaching the small baby to take it. After a moment of contemplation, Max pulled his thumb out of his mouth and eagerly accepted the bottle.
"He doesn't like his pacifier, you know that," Magnus continued, picking up a now fussy Ginny and giving her a bottle of her own, holding it to her mouth as she slowly drank the warmed milk. "Aren't you going to be late?" he added as he jostled the small child into a more comfortable position. Alec glanced at the clock and then looked again, his face setting into an expression of horror.
"I was supposed to leave twenty minutes ago! It's going to be over before I get there! Shit!" Alec handed the bottle and Max towards an amused Magnus, who had to jostle the baby already in his arms to hold the new acquisition.
"I love you," Alec told him, brushing his lips against his cheek, "and you," he kissed Ginny, "and you too, even if you directly disobeyed me," he added towards Max before kissing him. "Be back soon!" he called out, leaving behind an amused Warlock and two content babies.
So, a little bit of shameless fluff before the action begins. This story, at least according to A Really Gay Spider, who deserves credit for a lot of the ideas that will make up this story, is darker than the first, so there probably won't be a lot of this, but I hope you enjoyed this nonetheless. I will try to update again as soon as possible. And again, thank you for reading!