Twinkle, twinkle
Alec meets him when he is seven.
'Him' being the prettiest and sparkliest person Alec has ever seen. 'Him' also being the person who is currently rescuing Alec from his kidnappers.
Although, Alec is rather out of it, so he honestly doesn't actually remember all that much from their meeting.
Alec was kidnapped and while he doesn't understand what exactly is going on - his kidnappers' talk about betrayal of the circle and traitors to Valentine's cause - really doesn't make much sense to him.
What he does understand however is his kidnappers' discussion about what to do with Alec himself. And while he doesn't entirely know what 'getting rid of him' means, he knows a threat when he hears one. So, Alec is doing his best to stay absolutely, entirely silent, not wanting to draw any additional attention.
It's already been a while since these people took him - has to be because Alec is getting hungry despite having been taken right after lunch - and the argument around him is just getting louder and louder.
His vision is blurry and his thoughts are fuzzy, but Alec can tell that they are in a place he has never been to before and that there are at least eight people around him and that Alec doesn't know any of them.
And Alec is just really scared.
He is hungry, he is cold, his vision is blurry and he is scared. He doesn't know where he is, he doesn't know these people and Alec just wants to go home. Wants his mom to hug him and to see his little sister who is the only person in the world who always smiles whenever she sees Alec.
He just really really wants to go home.
Suddenly, there is a crash somewhere in the building.
Followed by another much louder one, so loud it seems to vibrate along the very walls. Then something that sounds almost like a scream before it abruptly cuts off.
And then there is silence.
People around him are moving, clearly preparing for a fight, because Alec can see glowing shapes all over the room.
Seraph blades? Like Mom's?
But only Shadowhunters have seraph blades and Shadowhunters are the good guys. So, why did they take Alec then?
His brain is muddied and he can't really focus on the thought before there is another crash, much closer than the last one. And then the door on the other side of the room crashes open in a shower of sparkling light that looks really pretty, despite his blurry vision.
Alec can barely make out the flashes of light that immediately arch through the room, but they get closer and closer to Alec, until they are right in front of him, around him. He feels himself enveloped in warmth and pushed back, further out of the way.
It's nice. This warmth is really nice.
He gets distracted from the pretty sparkling light by people yelling, snarling around him, arguing once more.
"Bane! Figures that those traitors would sink so low as to ask one of your ilk for help," someone snarls - Alec thinks it's the big guy who had been talking about getting rid of Alec.
And then a different voice answers, entirely calm, sounding almost mocking, "Oh, you poor soul. You think that I am here because they asked me to? How truly misguided you are." Suddenly, the tone changes, now much darker than before. "But you forget, this is my city. And you took a child. That is always going to put you on the wrong side of me. Entirely irreverent of his parentage."
The room is entirely silent, no one makes a noise. Almost like people are scared.
Then, the voice continues, the tone is back to flippantly mocking. "Although, all the better if I get to throw around some of your lot a bit without the Clave promptly starting to breathe down my neck for touching one of their precious Shadowhunters, be they Circle or not."
Alec quite likes the voice, likes how calm it is, how sure. He tries to focus his vision, wanting to see this person, but everything further away remains just as blurry as before and instead Alec gets distracted by the sparkles that are still surrounding him. It's very nice, feeling almost like a cozy, protective blanket around his shoulders.
Meanwhile the room has descended into chaos. Someone snarls a threat, then some mocking laughter and there is a lot of movement. A fight.
Alec can only make out blurry shapes and the glow of seraph blades. And a whole lot of flashing light - magic, he thinks, that has to be magic - is arching through the room.
Then as suddenly as it started, it's over again. There is silence once more, only interrupted by a groan here or there from somewhere in the room.
And suddenly someone is crouching down in front of Alec, who had been kept entirely safe on the other side of the room, covered in sparkling light. A face swims into view, close enough for Alec to see.
Before he can flinch back from this person, the pretty voice from earlier says, "Hello there, little one."
This is the person with the sparkling light.
It takes Alec a second, but finally he replies shyly, "Hi."
The face is still somewhat blurry, but Alec can still make out a smile.
"You must be Alexander."
Alec just nods. His head feels really heavy.
The man hums. "Your parents are very worried about you. Are you hurt anywhere?"
The question has Alec immediately shaking his head, but then he reconsiders. "Everything is blurry."
A head tilt. "Hm. How about we get out of here, so we can get you back to your parents? And then I can also check why your vision might be blurry."
Alec immediately nods, "Yes, please." He doesn't know this person, but still, somehow, for some reason trusts this man who showed up and now the people who took him are all strewn across the room and no one is yelling anymore. Alec wants to go with him much rather than stay here.
Another smile. "Alright. We'll have to get out from under the wards for me to portal us out though. Would it be alright if I carry you?"
Alec considers. He doesn't like being carried as a rule. Not since Mom said that he is too old now, that he is an older brother now, that he is the one who has to do the protecting. But, well, Alec can't really see and he is also still cold and maybe just a tiny bit scared.
So, he nods.
Immediately, Alec feels himself being picked up and settled on the man's hip.
This close, he can finally clearly see the face of the man who rescued him.
He is really pretty and there are even sparkles around his eyes.
"You are very pretty," Alec says, straightforward as always. After a second he adds on, "And sparkly."
A laugh.
The man has warm magic, a pretty laugh and a pretty smile, crouches down to Alec's level to talk to him and he has sparkles around his eyes and all over his clothes. He is the prettiest person Alec has ever seen. And Alec decides then and there that he wants to marry someone just like him when he grows up.
"Thank you, sweetheart. You are very pretty as well." The man smiles.
"Boys aren't pretty," Alec immediately protests the man's statement.
Alec can tell when they finally step outside, sees the man make a movement with his hand and then there is a whirlpool of light - a portal, Alec has seen portals before - in front of them. The man easily steps through and all Alec feels is warmth washing over him.
And he is just so tired, he can barely keep his eyes open. So, he puts his head on the man's shoulder.
The man replies with a laugh. "But I'm a boy."
That's quite the conundrum. It takes Alec a bit to come up with a solution.
"Only boys with sparkles can be pretty," he finally decides on, even if it comes out as a mumble.
It still gets him another laugh.
"My, you are certainly going to be charmer when you grow up, aren't you."
Alec wants to protest that he is already seven so he doesn't have that much growing up to do, but he falls asleep before he has the chance, entirely exhausted from today's events and feeling oh so utterly safe.
He wakes up back in his room at the Institute, Izzy a warm lump under his blanket and his father sleeping in the chair next to his bed.
Alec looks around, a little disappointed that the man is gone but very happy to be back home. He is still so exhausted he promptly falls asleep again.
His dreams that night are full of sparkles and light.
A/N: So, the entire premise of this story is me asking: What if you had an Alec who is just as grumpy as canon-Alec but also out-and-proud and self-assured like the world-inverted Alec?
The answer is apparently: You get fluff. A whole damn lot of it :D
Would love to know what you think :)
