How Green Becomes Wood

"No, it doesn't feel good," Xander said bluntly. "At least, it shouldn't." He shook his head. "Anyway, the rest of the family is fine. Having Zeinab around is a lot of fun. I've been learning how to cook some cool stuff from her."
 
"That's cool. I can't say I ever thought I'd end up being fed so much Middle Eastern food," Milo said, thinking about everything he had been fed anytime he visited the Necropolis, "I think Zeinab is the one who kept trying to get me to eat more?"
 
"Yep. It's how she shows she likes you," Xander replied. "One of the ways, anyway. It's been fun having her around even if she does kind of get in my space a lot. Takes some getting used to." At least she didn't touch. He appreciated that, and he knew she likely didn't even realize he felt crowded. He could stand it for a little longer. It wasn't that big of a deal. "Next time you come over, I'll make sure you get some American stuff, too."
 
"I can get American food anywhere," Milo replied with a little laugh, "I can survive being fed home cooked authentic Middle Eastern foods. I mean, it'll be hard, but I think, I trust, I have the strength in me to survive such a turmoil."
 
"Then anytime you annoy me, I'll remind you to eat more and stand up straight," Xander told him before following Milo's instructions to the letter. He helped Milo finish up everything that was left and then headed out, offering his friend a ride home, as always.
 
Like he had the day before, Milo accepted the ride home with more ease than before. He just wanted a little bit more time with his friend, really.

Back at home, Zeinab was cooking dinner. It was her last night staying at the home, so she wanted to make something really special, while Dark, Daizi, and Ivy were all in the living room together, rolling a ball back and forth across the floor, although when she heard the door open, Ivy squeaked and crawled towards the door and her parents followed close behind.
 
Xander dropped Milo off, waited long enough to see him make it through the door, and then headed back home. When he walked in the door, he paused in the middle of removing his shoes and watched Ivy and his parents in amusement. "It's a welcoming parade," he remarked, finishing his action of removing his shoes. He touched the salt and crouched down to offer Ivy a fist bump. "Hey, Mini. Miss me?"
 
"We had to make sure she is not up to chaos," Dark replied easily while Ivy excitedly fist-bumped Xander before trying and failing to stand up, ultimately just falling over. As she sat there, confused about what had happened, Dark looked a very long way down at her and said, "No blood? Go on, try again."

Daizi chuckled softly, "We were actually waiting for you, we need to talk about the vow renewal before we forget--it's nothing bad, you don't need to worry about it."
 
Ivy happily crawled along with her family as they returned to the living room, pulling herself up on the furniture once she was near to it and using it to maneuver on her feet. As they went, Dark briefly poked his head upstairs to fetch his other son.
 
Alec came galloping downstairs to join them, saying an excited hello to Ivy as he slid past on his socks. "What's up?" he asked, flopping onto the floor next to the coffee table. He smiled at Ivy and held out his hands in an offer to hold her if she wanted.

"Everyone in the neighborhood after that racket," Xander said dryly, flopping onto the couch near Alec.
 
Ivy giggled at how Alec slid and then reached out to him with both arms, letting go of the coffee table and doing her best to balance on her two feet, much too wobbly to take a step towards him.

"As you know, our vow renewal is just a few weeks away," Dark said, sitting easily on the couch, "We need to plan what the two of you will wear for it."
 
Alec leaned over and scooped Ivy up, cuddling her close and pretending to eat her side. Then he sat back, letting her lounge on his lap. "I have a suit, don't I?"

"You outgrew it and it has glitter permamently emeshed in the fabric," Xander said dryly. "What are you expecting us to wear, Ba?"
 
"On our invitations, we established a black tie dress code," Daizi began to answer, wondering why it felt like they were breaking some horrible news to them.

"Which means we need to decide on a time for us to pick out a proper tuxedo." Dark finished.
 
"Oh," the twins said in a perfectly synchronized flat tone.

"But you'll be in a tux! We can't dress like the groom, can we?" Alec protested. "Ladies aren't supposed to dress like the bride."

"Right," Xander agreed, nodding quickly. "I have a very nice dress shirt and... pants, I think."
 
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