How Green Becomes Wood

Dark watched him for a few moments and then looked down at Ivy, feeling like Xander was missing something about this. Ivy didn't seem particularly bothered by what was happening and was contentedly gurgling and jingling a toy. It would be better saved for next year, he thought. And if Ivy got sick, surely they all would.

"I'll have to believe you," Daizi told Alec, holding onto him like she would hold onto her husband, "But we've been wandering awhile, I'm sure we're close. It's definitely more fun than relying on a map."
 
As far as Xander was concerned, Ivy was washable. Dark hovered so much when she was somewhere unfamiliar, he really couldn't see how she'd manage to put anything unhealthy in her mouth, and she wanted to explore! Might as well let her. She wasn't made of fine China.

"Nope, that's the wrong way," Alec sighed. "You pick now, Mama! We have straight, right, and left. All the choices!"
 
"Let's go right again," Daizi replied, "We'll have Ivy pick next. I wonder how deep we've made it in."

"Fairly deep, I would say," Dark mused, glancing behind again.

"If you listen... There were a lot of voices when we came in... I think that way," She pointed, "You can sort of hear people ordering food." She pointed in another direction, "and that way there are goats."
 
"The way out was on the same side but opposite end," Xander remarked as they walked.

"Alright, here's another fork. Straight or left, Ivy?" Alec asked, crouching next to her.
 
Ivy babbled at him, holding up her toy towards him before sticking it back into his mouth. Frowning, Dark peered down over the stroller at his daughter, "I am not sure how to translate that."

"Oh, it's easy, we just need to have a person in each opening and call to her. Whoever she looks at is the way we'll go."
 
As both of her brothers called for her, Ivy shifted her gaze between them both and then began to reach out to Alec, squeaking.

"I guess we go left, then," Dark chuckled, heading that way with the stroller.

"I'm sorry, habibi," Daizi said to Xander, "but maybe she knows something we don't."

"Maybe she does," Dark mused, peering ahead, "Just at the end of the corridor, to the left. That looks almost like a change in lighting, does it not?"
 
"I chose the right way! Thank you, Ivy, for guiding us!" Alec told her, stooping down long enough to tickle her lightly before returning to his mother's arm.

"That's alright. Any way is fine with me as long as we don't end up spending the night out here," Xander stated lightly. "Yeah, that does look different. I think we're on the right track."
 
Checking his pocketwatch, "We are making good time, I believe. We have not been here for too long."

"I bet we only have a few turns left to take," Daizi predicted and after listening for a few moments, said, "I think we should go left here.'
 
"Worst case scenario, we have the map," Daizi grinned, pulling Alec in close.

"Is the map even usable at this point?" Dark asked, looking around at the corn, "There are no landmarks and I have not been keeping track of our turns."
 
Alec giggled, leaning into Daizi lightly and half-hugging her arm. "True, we have the map!"

"The map that no one wanted us to have," Xander remarked dryly as he pulled out his phone. He pulled up the map on his phone and quickly traced their path. Keeping track of where he was was a skill he hadn't even realized he'd developed, but it came in handy over the years. It actually moderately surprised him when other people did not know. "We're right there," he said, showing it to Dark.
 
Dark raised his eyebrows, impressed by how quickly Xander had found their spot, "I still do not think we need it. It is only a corn maze. But if that is correct, then we have almost solved it without needing it, and surely we can complete the rest on our own."

"If our property was larger, I would've grown a hedge maze," Daizi sighed, "I thought, how wonderful it would be to have our own labyrinth. It's a tragedy there aren't monsters we could keep inside, but I would add stone sculptures hidden in the corners and a long iron cord following the path, to recall to mind Theseus. But we had enough money for a garden, we didn't have the money for gardens. Versailles has a beautiful hedge maze. It was very romantic, you could easily imagine meeting your lover hidden in some secret corner. Or meeting someone you are hatching a plot with."

"Or both," Dark added with a glint in his eye.
 
Xander tucked his phone back into his pocket. "A hedge maze would be rad. DOn't know about the whole meeting a lover thing but the rest of it sounds pretty cool."

"Why an iron cord?" Alec asked, emphasizing iron. "I don't remember iron having a significance in the story. Or is it just so it won't decay like a bit of thread would?"
 
"I suppose you will have to meet a conspirator then," Dark replied, but kept his gaze on his wife for a moment longer.

"That's exactly why. It doesn't need to be iron, necessarily, but I imagine, this metal cord tracing its way through, until settling on a metal sculpture shaped like the ball of yarn, or twine, I forget now which he had, although I presume it changes depending on the version, set upon a stone pillar. I love my environment to be romantic but foreboding. If you're welcome there, you're safe, but if you aren't, beware of what may lurk in the shadows."
 
"Iron would keep out the fea creatures, too, which might be a good thing depending on which wants to meet you," Alec mused.

"A coconspirator at the ball of iron twine. Sounds like the start of a decent book," Xander agreed. "I think it's a left here."
 
"That's true," Daizi mused, "Oh, the things that will never be. Maybe in another life."

"In another life, you are fae," Dark told her, letting go of the stroller with one hand so he could hold onto her again, "Even in this one, I think you must be, somewhere in your lineage."

"Is that how I got you?" She asked sweetly, falling in step with him, as they made the left Xander suggested, "Do any of you see the exit yet? Do you know, once I found a maze's exit but didn't realize and just began walking around its perimeter?"
 
"That sounds really frustrating," Xander said, ignoring his parents lovey-dovey moment.

"Good job finding the exit! I don't see it yet, but I think we're close," Alec said. Two more turns, and he cheered, "Found it! We found the way!"

"Awesome! We don't have to eat corn until the rescue party finds us," Xander smirked.
 
"I think if we were truly lost, I would just lift Alec onto my shoulders and have him navigate for us," Dark joked, arm-in-arm with his wife, "and when he said to turn left, we would go right."

"Or we'd just follow the right wall through all parts of the maze to escape," Daizi replied happily, "Do you want to go to the petting zoo now? It's a nice one, from what I recall."
 
Alec gave Dark the gentlest of punches to the arm. "I'm not that bad!"

"Yes you are," Xander said.

"Fine, but you don't have to say it."

"Yes we do."

Alec couldn't argue with that, so he just stuck out his tongue at his brother. "I declare it's time for a petting zoo!"
 
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