How Green Becomes Wood

There was distant thunder, and some lightning over the ocean, but the rumble was low enough that it didn't bother Ivy, who was curled up tight against Alec's chest. She curled her fingers around his shirt and gazed up at him with her dark, adoring eyes. They kept shutting against her will, but she wasn't looking at the water, or the room, or the lightning in the sky, she was only gazing up at her big brother, feeling completely safe in his arms.
 
Xander leaned against the side of the doorframe watching the ocean and Ivy and Alec. Alec didn't realize how much Ivy was watching him because he was looking out at the water, but Xander saw. He watched them for a little while, just letting vague thoughts and emotions drift through him as he watched his brother and his little sister. So much trust.

Finally, Xander said, "We should put her down."

"Alright," Alec said, "but I don't think she'll like it much." He yawned and stood up. "Maybe we can just... let her fall asleep first?"

"Sure," Xander agreed, closing the door, "but let's at least get closer to her bed, then."

They went to Dark and Daizi's bedroom and sat on the bed together with Ivy, slowly getting her ready for bed, feeling pretty tired, themselves.
 
Since she was allowed to fall asleep before being set down, she didn't stir much once she was out of her brother's arms. She wiggled slightly, but this time she didn't seem all that close to waking up again. It had been a very long day to be a baby whose parents left without her. It had only happened once before, and she hadn't noticed then. She had now. But she was sleeping, and by the time she woke up, they would be back home with her. Everything was okay, and she was really tired.
 
Xander groaned and laid back on the bed, intending to rest just a moment. "Kids are exhausting. I dunno why people want them."

"It's a good thing someone does or else we'd be extinct in no time flat," Alec pointed out, sitting next to him.

"Fair point," Xander mumbled. "Still don't know why Milo'd want one."

Alec glanced at him curiously. "Milo wants one?"

Xander gave a partial shrug. "Apparently. A bigger man than me, that's for sure."

"Definitely taller," Alec teased, lying down next to him. "I don't think Tom's thought once about the future like that, and Becky changes her mind every couple of weeks. I wonder if Sloan wants one?"

"Be a bit harder for her," Xander yawned, "but maybe. Can't imagine it. Don't even want to be in a relationship, let alone a dad."

Alec laid down next to him. "One is not dependant on the other, you know."

"Yeah, like I'm going to try to raise a mini-me on my own," Xander scoffed. He closed his eyes. "We'll leave stuff like that to people willing to get their hearts broke, right?"

"Right," Alec agreed quietly. He stared at the ceiling. He meant to get up. He meant to nudge Xander up. The next thing either of them knew, they were sound asleep on the edge of the bed near Ivy.
 
Dark and Daizi entered the house surprisingly quietly and drenched with rain, fighting back laughter. Dark's suit jacket, used earlier to keep them off the sand was given to Daizi to try and fail to keep as an umbrella, and after the door was shut and locked, they listened for the sound of any movement. It was silent. They didn't bother turning on the lights.

"They're all asleep," Daizi purred, slyly turning to her husband.

"It seems so," He answered, leaving his shoes by the front door while Daizi let her purse drop, her back against the wall. He carried her to the bedroom, her legs around his waist and her arms around his shoulders, and, after shutting their bedroom door behind him, he pulled his face away from hers for a moment and promptly swore under his breath, setting his wife back down on the floor, "they're asleep in our bed."

"What!?" Daizi asked, stepping behind him and zipping her dress back up.

"If it is not them, somebody is."

Daizi swore under her breath, knowing this was objectively very sweet, and absolutely adorable, but, "Do we sleep on the couch? I don't want to wake them."
 
Xander woke first with a start and sat up bleary-eyed. He squinted at Dark and Daizi in the dark, ready to fight an intruder, but then instantly relaxed. "Oh. It's you," he mumbled. "Baby shleeping. Night." He grabbed Alec's arm and pulled him up.

Alec grumbled and moaned to fit Xander but let his brother half-carry him out of their parents' room. The pair stumbled out and to their own room. They collapsed on their bed, door open, and dropped back to sleep as if nothing had happened.
 
"Goodnight," Daizi murmured, "Thank you..."

"Goodnight," Dark said, turning slightly to the side as the twins passed them by.

When the door shut, Daizi covered her face with her hands, "Why is this so embarrassing?"

"There was no way for us to have known."

"We are soaking wet. I didn't expect the storm."

"Neither did I." He sighed, the mood gone. Oh well. After changing into dry clothes, Daizi put her hair up, removed what was left of her makeup while Dark removed traces of her lipstick from his face and neck, and then they crawled into their dry, cozy bed and snuggled up together before falling asleep for the night.
 
The next morning, the twins were bit slow to wake, but once they woke up, they were wide, wide awake! They came out in bathrobes and plunked themselves down for breakfast, smirking quietly between themselves. Each held a small packageroughly wrapped in paper. It looked like a fast, last-minute wrapping job.
 
That morning, Dark had woken up early to watch the sunrise. For a few days that week, he had done so, but it seemed right to do it on their last full day. He sat out there with Ivy in his lap, talking to her about the colours and how fun it would be when they made it back home to see their puppy again. After a little while, Daizi came out to join him, resting her head against her shoulder. The sky after a storm was stunning.

At breakfast, when the packages were plopped down, Dark saw their attempt to hide their grins, and had a bad feeling about what was about to happen, "What is this?"
 
"We got you something," Alec said in as close to a serious voice as he could manage. He handed his to Dark while Xander handed his to Daizi. "They are very, very important."

Xander gave a slight nod. "And if you do not wear them, we shall refuse to leave this house," he said gravely.

They were shirts. Both a bright, eye-watering blue, and both with big, bold, swirling white words on front and back. On the front, they said, "Shell Yeah Beaches," with a sun and sunglasses. On the back, in slightly smaller letters, "Trippin' with the Fam" preceeded the date and the name of the area they were in amongst various beach paraphernalia. The hem of the right sleeve on both shirts had the logo, "Sup, Beaches?" in tiny, almost missable letters. They'd managed to pick shirts that were just a bit larger than needed so they'd fit loosely on both Dark and Daizi, though it didn't quite fit Dark's shape right since he was fit and muscular and the shirt was intended for more like an extra large dad bod.
 
Dark and Daizi both simultaneously unwrapped them, and Dark pressed his lips into a thin line as he held up the t-shirt, knowing he was now obligated to wear it and explain to Daizi what it said. Taking a glance at the twins, he asked, "...Really?"

"What do they say?" Daizi asked, sensing foolery but not knowing the extent of it. But, after Dark told her, she set it down, turned her head to the side, and asked, "Well? Do you both have one?"
 
The twins stood up and removed their bathrobes in perfect sync. They were both wearing shorts and the same blue shirt. The electric blue really set off the red in their hair and light sunburns. They posed perfectly.

"Family always sticks together," Xander said solemnly, knowing he'd likely never, ever wear this shirt after today, but it was worth it to see Dark and Daizi wearing tourist tack.
 
"Yes," Alec said, wilting just a little, "but I'm not sure it'll fit. They only went so small." He trotted to his room and returned with a tiny shirt, but it wasn't quite tiny enough. It looked to be for perhaps three-year-olds.

"If you belt it, you could call it a dress," Xander said dryly.

"Or lay it over her like a blanket!" Alec said cheerfully.
 
Dark took the t-shirt and held it up, looking at it in comparison to Ivy. It definitely was too big, but... "We may be able to safety pin it to fit like a onesie."

"If she has one, even if it's too big, then I suppose I'll wear mine." Daizi teased, "Because I would only do it if all of us were, if even one of us were left out, I'd have adamantly refused."
 
"I don't know," Daizi said, standing up, bringing both Ivy and the shirt, "I had thought maybe we could splinter off, but since we've got these great new shirts, clearly we need to stick together."

Dark fought back a sigh, looking at the bright blue colour. He couldn't recall the last time he wore something so... exuberant. "I just have to ask," he picked up the shirt, knowing he was going to wear it anyway, because of course he was going to wear it anyway, "have I done something to displease you?"
 
Alec and Xander gave him identical smirks. "Maybe. Maybe not."

Alec hopped up out of his shirt. "I think we should go window shopping! And possibly real shopping!"

"And then catch a ride or two," Xander said.

"And finish off with a boat ride of some kind?"

"Or possibly just a run through the waves."

"And of course an excellent seafood dinner."

"But we're flexible and open to alterations."
 
"What ever you want to do!" Daizi hummed, going into the bedroom to change. She didn't need to see what she was wearing, and she had to admit, it was a pretty good prank. She didn't know how to style bright blue, so she put on one of her black maxi skirts, having been told black goes with everything, and when she reemerged, she had tied hers up and rolled the sleeves. The size they bought was large enough the text could still be read, but she did manage to make it look almost cute. Not her style at all, but cute.

When Dark came out in his, it definitely... fit him less than ideally. The fabric over his stomach hung awkwardly, it fit nice around his chest, but the sleeves looked a bit tight on his biceps. "Who was this made for?" He asked mildly, picking at the loose fabric, thinking about how it would've been great when Daizi was still eight months pregnant.
 
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