Born to Endless Night by Cassandra Clare, Sarah Rees Brennan Page A

always yes.”
    *    *    *
    After classes the next day Simon sat in his dank dungeon room, resisted the almost irresistible temptation to go find Isabelle, and mustered up his courage.
    He marched up the many flights of stairs and knocked on the door of Alec and Magnus’s rooms.
    Magnus answered the door. He was wearing jeans and a loose, frayed T-shirt, holding the baby, and he looked very tired.
    “How did you know he’d just woken up from a nap?” Magnus asked as he opened the door.
    “Uh, I didn’t,” said Simon.
    Magnus blinked at him, in the slow way that tired people did, as if they had to think deeply about blinking. “Oh, my apologies,” he said. “I thought you were Maryse.”
    “Isabelle’s mother is here?” Simon exclaimed.
    “Shhhh!” said Magnus. “She might hear you.”
    The baby was grizzling, not quite crying but making a sound like a small, unhappy tractor. He wiped his damp face against Magnus’s shoulder.
    “I’m really sorry to interrupt,” said Simon. “I was wondering if I could have a word alone with Alec.”
    “Alec’s sleeping,” Magnus said flatly, and began to close the door.
    Alec’s voice rang out before the door was quite closed. He sounded as if he was midyawn. “No, I’m not. I’m awake. I can talk to Simon.” He appeared in the doorway, pulling the door back open. “Go out and take a long walk. Get some fresh air. It’ll wake you up.”
    “I’m great,” said Magnus. “I don’t need sleeping. Or waking. I feel great.”
    The baby waved his fat hands in Alec’s direction, the gestures loose and uncoordinated but unmistakable. Alec looked startled but smiled, a sudden, unexpectedly nice smile, and reached out to take the baby in his arms. As soon as he did, the baby stopped grizzling.
    Magnus waved his finger in the baby’s face. “I find your attitude insulting,” he informed him. He kissed Alec briefly. “I won’t be gone long.”
    “Take as long as you need,” said Alec. “I have this feeling my parents might be coming to help very shortly.”
    Magnus left, and Alec stepped away from the door, going to stand at the window with the baby.
    “So,” said Alec. His shirt was rumpled, clearly slept in, and he was bouncing a baby. Simon felt bad even bothering him. “What did you want to talk to me about?”
    “I’m really sorry again about the other day,” Simon told him.
    Then he wondered if it was terrible that he had referenced sex in front of Alec’s baby. Maybe Simon was just doomed to mortally offend Alec, over and over again. Forever.
    “It’s okay,” said Alec. “I once walked in on you and Isabelle. I guess turnabout’s fair play.” He frowned. “Although you two were in my room at the time, so actually I think you still owe me.”
    Simon was alarmed. “You walked in on me and Isabelle? But we haven’t . . . I mean, we didn’t . . . Did we?”
    It would be typical of Simon’s life, he thought. Of all things in the world, he would forget that.
    Alec looked upset to be having this discussion, but Simon fixed him with a pleading stare and Alec apparently took pity on Simon’s great patheticness.
    “I don’t know,” Alec said at last. “You were in the process of taking your clothes off, as I remember. And I try not to remember. And you seemed to be engaging in some sort of role-play.”
    “Oh. Whoa. Like advanced role-play? Were there costumes? Were there props? What is Isabelle going to be expecting here, exactly?”
    “I won’t discuss this,” said Alec.
    “But if you could just give me a tiny hint . . .”
    “Get out of here, Simon,” said Alec.
    Simon yanked himself back from the edge of role-playing panic, and pulled himself together.
    This was more words than he had spoken to Alec in years.
    Though Alec had just ordered him out of the room, so Simon had to admit things were not exactly going well.
    “I’m sorry,” said Simon. “I mean, I’m sorry for the inappropriate questions. And I’m