How Green Becomes Wood

"I did, yeah. Ivy helped," Ivy rested in the sling and cooed and nursed, "I wanted to do something to celebrate your first day back at school. Or, I guess, celebrate surviving your first day. You can have some, just make sure you save enough for Alec. If he's willing to eat..."
 
Xander smiled a little in satisfaction and snagged a cookie. "I figure I'd give him some space. Later talk to him. Unless you want to talk to him. Hey, mini Mouse, you make a good cookie."
 
"Yeah... that's smart. I was trying to decide if Dark or I should talk to him... but you're right, I should give him space. He deserves space to process." Daizi frowned, still hesitant, and ate a cookie just so she was doing something, "I sent Dark off to rest. Who knows if he actually is," she was unaware that while he was 'resting' he had decided to send videos of Ivy he had taken earlier in the day, "And yes, she was so helpful. She's a very, very good baking assistant."
 
Xander paused in mid-cookie nibble. "He's resting right now?" he asked, puzzled. "Then when did-" He stopped himself, feeling a bit like he was tattling. "Uh, never mind. Did the mini do anything exciting today?"
 
"She did a little push-up," Daizi said, stroking Ivy's hair, "so she's getting stronger. It's not a huge milestone, but it was still nice. Since everything is so delayed for her."
 
"You are allowed to celebrate it like it is a huge milestone, you know," Xander commented dryly. "If you want to. Doesn't matter if she's delayed or not, she still did it, and that's cool. Unless you're waiting to celebrate until she says 'mama' and you don't have to chop off your hair."
 
"I am excited about it. But as far as milestones go, it's a minor one. It's not like her smile, it's just another step in the road..." She hummed, rubbing her fingers against Ivy's arm, "and..." there was a long pause, "I was right there, but Dark noticed it. Just like how he saw her smile. And when she first lifted her head. I guess I'm just waiting for one I can experience the same as everyone else. I know I get to hear her little coos, but... I don't know."
 
"If it makes you feel any better, you're the first person she looks to," Xander said. "You heard the coos before anyone else. You'll likely understand her gabbling before anyone else. It's not the same, but... I hope it helps."
 
A little smile played at Daizi's lips while she continued to rub Ivy's arm, and the rhythmic touch combined with the proximity to her mother's heartbeat seemed to be lulling her to sleep, "Am I really?"
 
"Sure, of course," Xander nodded. "She glances at the rest of us, looks at the Professor, but she stares at you. Anytime you're anywhere close, it's all eyes on you." He snagged two more cookies before moving toward the living room. "I have homework I should get to. Like a bunch of homework." And he needed to text Sloan about Alec's actions on the way home. "I should get to that."
 
For a little while, Daizi tried to think of something to reply with, but she couldn't think of anything. She hoped it wasn't because Ivy knew there was something different about her, wished she could stare back, and deeply loved knowing how connected Ivy was to her. But she was the first person Ivy ever knew. "Maybe it's just because she knows I'm who feeds her," she joked softly to obfuscate her own strong feelings about what she had been told, "Yeah, go do your homework. I don't want to keep you from it, school is important. Although I think it's absurd they assign homework on the first day of school. It shouldn't start until the second week."
 
"I know, right? It's like teachers missed having stuff to grade," Xander grumbled, plunking himself down on the floor next to the coffee table. "You'd think they'd want to take it easy at first, too." He set his cookies to the side and spread out his books before realizing he should grab something to drink. He fetched a cup of milk and sat back down, pulling out his phone to text Sloan first. DE did not go well. He drove into a dividing post when we were just supposed to circle the parking lot. It freaked him out a lot.
 
"That's one thing about Dark which seperates himself from your other teachers, then. He hates grading. Sometimes he's offered to pay me to grade essays for him, since they're submitted electronically for plagarism tracking, and I have to point out we share a bank account. Honestly, last Spring, when he was grading while also coping with... everything else, I thought he was going to break."

Aw geeze, that sucks... Is he okay? If it helps, in my class, we had someone think the car was drive, but it was in reverse, and they accelerate into another car that thankfully nobody else was in.
 
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"I guess he could always pay you in favors instead of money, like foot rubs, but it seems like he does all that anyway," Xander remarked. He's fine physically. I think he thought that once it came to it, everything would be great. Then it wasn't magically better.
 
"Yeah, we both already give each other little things like that..." Daizi curled up on the couch, cradling Ivy close, "It's good news for you students anyway, because I think I'm probably a harsher grader than he is."

Dude, that really sucks. I'm sorry. I wish I knew how to help, because I know how freaky driving can be.
 
"Probably," Xander said, absently, opening books and pretending to be looking at them while texting Sloan. He probably didn't need to pretend, but old habits died hard. It's alright. Thanks. I don't think you can help, but I'll keep you updated.
 
Had Daizi been sighted, she might have been able to see that he wasn't actually doing homework, but all she could hear was the rustle of pages, so she assumed. After a few minutes of this, Dark came downstairs, greeting all of them, and Daizi smiled up at him, asking, "Did you get any sleep?"

"I tried my best, but no," Dark replied, sitting down on the couch and quickly and emphatically informing her, "but I did take a hot bath, which is still self-care, so you cannot criticize me for not taking care of myself. I am improving. How are you, Xander?"
 
"Not failing," Xander said. Having finished his conversation with Sloan, he was now actually doing his homework. And hating it. There were too many words and lines and figures and stuff! "Mr. Major wants to meet Ivy and is all flustered about her and, you know, his usual flustering."
 
"Good. Let me know if you need help." He stretched, settling in. Personally, he felt immensely pleased with himself that, although he had not napped, he had done something nobody could argue wasn't exclusively for himself. Hearing Xander's account of his coworker, he chuckled lightly and said, "He does text me sometimes for pictures of her... I am not sure if it is wise to bring her into a high school, though. I do not intend to be the sort of parent who prevents her from all germs which can possibly exist, because, for godsakes, I definitely did not grow up in a sterile environment, but high schools are some of the most disease-ridden places on the planet."

"Invite him over, then," Daizi suggested, "he is kind of one of your friends, he and Rose, and now that new one, the English teacher, are the three coworkers you talk about the most, and you've known Art for seven years, now."
 
"That works," Xander said, waving his pencil. He set down the pencil and looked up at Dark. "I've been working on this for a long time. I should take a break. You need anything? Want anything?" Without Alec there to distract or to distract him, he was literally looking for excuses to not do his homework.
 
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