How Green Becomes Wood

"I think that is a great idea," Dark agreed, "we can call her today to set it up. And then, when you are ready, we can get the cake mix and the flowers."

"Whatever you need," Daizi said gently, "I know that days like this aren't easy, so... Talk to us, okay, if you need to?" She came further into the kitchen and rubbed Alec's back. Then she lingered near to Xander, not touching him, but she wanted to make sure he knew she supported him too, and respected his boundaries, "But we won't force ourselves where we aren't wanted, so if at any point, you can just tell us to go away, and you don't need to worry about hurting our feelings."
 
Xander looked down, not sure what to say. He appreciated what they were doing, he really did, but he still wasn't sure how accept kindness like this, deep and impactful kindness. It felt weird to just say thank you, thank you hardly covered it, but what else could he say or do? This wasn't something he was familiar with. None of it. He took a second look at what he was wearing and decided to start with that. "I should change," he said, standing, "and we should both aloe."

"I already did," Alec said quietly. He was just as much at a loss as Xander, though in his own way. He felt like he was swimming in a sea of emotions, and he didn't want to deal with them. Could he find a deserted island somewhere and take them on one at a time? Or was he forced to deal with it all at once and feel like he was drowning?

Xander went back upstairs and took his time picking out a new shirt and pants as if he wasn't sure what he should wear. He knew exactly what he was going to wear, but it was nice to get a bit of space, breathe, and prepare. He hadn't been prepared for this. Not one bit. It felt like getting sucker punched in the school cafeteria. He dressed in black, applied aloe, and headed back downstairs, ready to face things now.
 
When Xander went upstairs, Daizi moved back near Alec and put her arm around his shoulder. There wasn't a lot she could do, this wasn't something either of them had dealt with. Sure, Dark's parents were dead, but there was no love lost there. And Daizi's mother was dead, but for her, always had been. But the twins, even with their mother's problems, her loss was still palpable in ways their own parental losses had never been. She kept her arm around him, and softly said, "It's okay if you have a lot of conflicting feelings too... Nobody has ever said you need to feel only one thing... Be kind to yourself, habibi."

Dark, meanwhile, stood up to make breakfast. He doubted anyone would feel much like eating, except maybe his wife, but he didn't want to further unsettle an already shaky day. So he began to cook, very intentionally choosing foods he knew the twins really enjoyed. When he heard Xander coming downstairs, he took a glance over his shoulder and said, "Would you like to help me?" because he knew how whenever Xander was worked up, he liked to have something to focus on.
 
Alec tried to smile as he leaned into Daizi, savoring her loving touch. He felt safe here. Maybe she was his little island in the ocean. A place of safety not to hide, but to breathe and face problems on his own terms. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "If just feels really strange," he admitted quietly. "And I... feel a little guilty for forgetting until I woke up this morning."

Xander ran a hand through his hair and joined Dark in the kitchen. "Yeah, sure, what do you need?" he asked, glancing around and glad of the offer. He, too, felt guilty, though not as much. Everything had been wonderful and busy and new. It made sense to forget, especially without the constant reminder of their mother's presence.
 
Daizi rubbed his back with one hand and fixed his hair with her other, "It's okay... You don't need to feel guilty. There have been years I completely missed my son's birthday. You wouldn't think you could forget something like that, but sometimes it happens. You're only human... And you've had a lot going on."

"Can you do the eggs? Unless you would rather try your hand at flipping pancakes." Dark suggested, trying to take a long look at Xander without making him obvious. He was much taller than he was in December, and his face had matured somewhat. He still looked fifteen, certainly, but, time had passed. And now he was confident beside him, rather than struggling to successfully peel an orange, "She would be proud of you, I think."
 
"I suppose you are right," Alec sighed. After a quiet moment, he gently pulled away from Daizi and straightened. "Would it be alright if we call Aunt Ciara early? I want her to have plenty of time to decide." That, and he had nothing else to do and would rather do something useful instead of watching someone else make breakfast.

Xander said nothing as he sorted out the eggs and started taking care of that side of breakfast. He hoped Dark was right. He felt Dark was probably right. He'd not really thought about it before, but he did hope his mother was proud of them. Or would have been. He still wasn't sure what he thought of the afterlife. He glanced toward his brother briefly then at Dark. "Yeah, I think so," he finally agreed.
 
"Of course," Daizi replied, taking out her phone, "Do you want to call her now?" After a moment she paused, knowing her phone was probably a bit confusing for sighted people, and got up to get Dark's from him. He unlocked it for her, and then she handed it to Alec, "Unless you want me to talk to her?"

Dark gave Xander a slight smile, lost on what to say. He didn't want to pressure either twin, and it wasn't like he was someone who had ever found it easy to talk about his feelings. But he would be there for them, and hopefully that would be enough.
 
"I can call her, I guess," Alec said. He found the number, braced himself, and dialed. The phone rang three times, and he'd nearly given up when it answered.

"This is Cunningham," came the crisp, clear words.

Alec froze. Kicking himself, he unglued his tongue and replied, "Hello, Aunt Ciara? This is Alec," he said cautiously.

A pause. "Oh, Alec," Ciara replied, sounding equally cautious. "Hello. Is everything alright?"

"Yes, yes, I mean, no, well, I suppose?" Alec stammered. "Only, it's our- Tara's birthday, and it kind of snuck up on us. We thought maybe next weekend we could maybe have a tiny birthday celebration for her? Just a little thing?"

A longer pause. "Alec, is one of your guardians there? May I speak with them?"

Alec glanced at Daizi. "Hold on, please?" Moving the phone away, he said, "She wants to speak with one of my guardians."
 
"Okay," Daizi said, taking the phone back from Alec, "Hi, Ciara, this is Daizi. I'm sorry if it was shocking to have heard Alec on the phone--It was his idea and he asked to call, so..." She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and finally sat down on one of the stools. Immediately, one of her hands was on her middle. Ciara didn't scare her, but Daizi could never quite figure out where she stood with her, which was an inherently stressful situation. Anytime she spoke to her, she felt this ridiculous pressure to prove she was doing right by them.
 
"It was shocking, yes, but it is perfectly alright," Ciara assured Daizi. "I wanted to speak with you as I assume you know your schedules better." A brief pause. "I would like to come to celebrate my sister's life with her sons." There was an odd tone of firmness in her voice as if she was steeling her own resolve as she spoke the words. "Would it be too short of notice if I were to come today? This evening?" Perhaps around six?"
 
Daizi exhaled lightly, relieved Ciara wasn't upset about it, "You're welcome to come then. I should just be returning from work, and of course Dark and the twins will be here. We can make dinner, if you would like... And Dark was going to take the boys to get a box mix for a cake so Xander could make her favourite, and they were going to get flowers, too. Do you know what her favourites were? Teenage boys, you know..."

While she waited for Ciara's response, Daizi held the phone a bit away and said, "She would like to come today, actually, not next weekend. At six."

Dark turned slightly towards her and shifted to look around at the house. Even not being able to see the gesture, Daizi blandly said, "The house is clean enough," before bringing the phone closer to hear what Ciara had to say.
 
Alec glanced at Xander, surprised by Ciara's quick and willing response.

"Dinner would be most acceptable," Ciara agreed. "I would be quite happy to bring the cake, if that is acceptable, but flowers would not survive a car trip. Flowers." She paused for a moment, thinking. When she spoke again, her voice was a bit distant. "I cannot remember if she ever decided on an actual type, but she loved purple and red flowers. Well, purple and orange anything, really. She would get quite angry with me when I would tell her that purple and orange mixed horribly." Warmth crept into her normally cool tones at the words, but then she seemed to catch herself and cleared her throat. "Anyway, I would suggest something in the purple family and perhaps lilies or pansies, whatever is in season."
 
"She would have gotten along with me, then. I don't mind if colours clash." Daizi said gently, testing to see if some warmth on her end helped at all, "But I'll let them know that... And you're welcome to bring the cake, if you would like to. Is there anything in particular you would like for dinner? Or know that she would have liked? Dark is a wonderful cook, and Xander is pretty skilled too. He's a fast learner with those sorts of things..."
 
"No, no, I would not wish to interfere," Ciara said crisply. "Those boys have known her nearly as long as I have, and I doubt they want me butting in more than I already have. I am sure whatever you put together will be absolutely marvelous. Thank you for your invitation to join, and I will be bringing the cake."

Somewhere in the distance on Ciara's end, what sounded like an alarm started to blare. It was far enough away that it was only annoying background noise, not deafening, and Ciara sighed. "Is there anything else?" she asked politely.
 
"No, not butting in," Daizi assured her, but then agreed, "Okay, I'll let them decide. And no, that's all. I need to start getting ready for--" She inhaled, shifted on her seat, and then exhaled, "Work. Sorry. But, it was good talking to you, and it will be nice having you over. It'll be good for the twins too, I think. I hope you find your day manageable." It felt uncomfortable to say 'have a nice day' on her dead sister's birthday, so she hoped that was an acceptable well-wish.

After saying goodbye, she waited for Ciara to hang up first, since she had called on Dark's phone and therefore found it eaiser than trying to tap around on the phone until she succeeded in hanging up.
 
"Thank you, please tell Alec I said thank you for calling me. Goodbye." She hung up.

"So, she is coming?" Alec asked. "And she's bringing the cake?"

"Huh, I was kind of hoping to make one myself," Xander remarked. Then he shrugged. "Guess it'd be real awkward for her to come empty-handed, and it's not like she can bring a gift."

"Good point," Alec agreed. "Did she tell you what kind of flowers? I heard you say something about clashing colors."
 
"She is coming, and did offer to bring the cake. I did tell her you were going to make one, but she wanted to. As for flowers, she said she doesn't recall your mother having a specific favourite, but she likes purple and orange best. Or purple and red, but I guess she always has liked purple and orange together." She set the phone down and slid it across the table and sighed, folding her hands ontop of her belly, "She also, Alec, wanted to thank you for calling."

"You can help with dinner, Xander," Dark said, "what should we make for tonight?" Last minute plans were not his favourite.

"I said we would let the twins decide."
 
"She did love purple," Alec mused with a thoughtful smile. "Sometimes with red, usually with orange."

"You definitely got your fashion sense from her," Xander smirked. He sighed and looked down at the eggs he was supposed to be tending to. "Well, I think Poor Man's Shepherd's Pie was her favorite. At least, that's what she called it. It was a special meal when we had more than two pennies to rub together. I don't think she ever made it the same way twice. The mashed potatoes and carrots were probably the only things that ever stayed the same, the vegetables always varied, and the meat was usually ground beef, but sometimes it was turkey if that was cheaper. Once, she made it with chicken. Ugh, those seasonings did not go well with chicken." He paused, still staring at the eggs. "I'd forgotten that."

"Her chicken and rice came out pretty good the three or four times we had it," Alec reminded him with a little smile, "but I think we all liked the shepherd's pie best of all. Maybe that?"

Xander nodded and poked at the eggs. "I'll see if I can find some kind of recipe to follow. I don't think these recipe books would have it, and I don't even know where to begin trying to make it blind."
 
"You can look online too," Dark advised, "but I do not believe shepherd's pie is too difficult to make. Cooger has made it once or twice, and he is no chef. But take some time, look around, and when you are ready we can go to the store. We probably have some of the ingredients here, but I doubt we have everything." He brought what breakfast was finished to the table, which Daizi was grateful for.

"You can look in my garden for flowers, you're welcome to clip any you think she would like. Not yet, because they would get wilty before 6, but, when you are ready." She remembered every flower in her garden, but always forgot what colours they were, so she had no idea if they had what they needed.
 
Xander brought the rest and slouched down into his normal seat. For once, he was not a bottomless pit of ravenous hunger, but he was still hungry, and he picked at his breakfast half-heartedly, eating about half of it.

Alec turned and hugged Daizi. "Thank you for being so supportive. It means a lot," he whispered to her.
 
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