How Green Becomes Wood

"I know," Daizi agreed, hugging Alec back, "but try telling him that. He is ever so distraught about how it seems baby furniture cannot both be safe, functional, and pleasant to the eyes. It's very sweet, he cares so much. I think he's probably going to wind up making her highchair so he doesn't instantaneously decompose and have to re-corporealize himself every time he steps foot in the dining room."

When Xander walked around the playpen, Ivy squealed up at him, kicking out her legs, and cooed out to him when he walked away. The pile of towels on the coffee table proved she had been imprisoned while Daizi did her chores.
 
"Just wait until she's old enough to start rearranging everything in the house and leaving them everywhere," Alec snickered. "If he makes her highchair, it will look amazing! But also take forever, so he'd best get a move on.

Xander returned with a cup of water and sat down next to the coffee table. He set his cup aside and picked up a towel to fold. Now and then, he glanced at Ivy and made a face at her.
 
"I think he'll take less time on it than he spent on her crib, because now he has her, so he doesn't have the same pressure to prepare for her. And we don't plan to start her on solids until she's six months old, adjusted, so he's got two months. He'll just have to be aware he can't carve a full relief into every leg and the back of it." Daizi replied, walking into the living room, hearing the way she squealed and wanting to make sure everything was alright.

Ivy was sucking on the ear of the stuffed rabbit she had with her and watching Xander intensely, giggling everytime he made a face at her, and sometimes attempting to make it back at him.
 
"Hmm, do you think he'll be able to resist the temptation?" Alec asked, grinning as he followed Daizi.

Xander pretended to suck on a corner of a towel and then "spat" it out. He twirled it around a bit and then folded it. Then he picked out a washcloth and gently dropped it on Ivy's head.
 
"No," Daizi laughed, "but he may be able to restrain himself. A high chair is bound to get messy, and an intricately carved design is difficult to clean. That may be enough to sway him... Not that I really want him to have to restrain himself, I'm certain the crib and cradle and highchair will be essentially heirlooms, but, I don't want him to drive himself crazy. I want him to feel proud of it, and I adore what he creates, but you know how he can run himself ragged in pursuit of perfection."

When the washcloth landed on her face, Ivy startled slightly and began to fuss, reaching up for the washcloth and grabbing onto it. As soon as she managed to get it off her face, though, she stared at it in amazement. And promptly stuck it into her mouth.
 
"I wonder if he'd be willing to accept painting instead of carving up near the top where it'll get messier," Alec mused. "Xander, what are you doing?"

"Nothing," came Xander's instant reply as he folded another towel.

"It looks like you're feeding Ivy towels," Alec frowned.

Xander shrugged. "Fiber's good for a kid! Right, Mouse?"

Alec rolled his eyes and went over to see if he could retrieve the washcloth from Ivy.
 
"Were you playing with Ivy?" Daizi asked, visibly surprised but not at all displeased. Sure, he had occasionally interacted with her while on suspension, but she couldn't recall a time when she had, herself, caught him initiating play with her.

Ivy, meanwhile, had absolutely no plans to give up the washcloth now that it was in her mouth, and she made this abundantly clear. When Alec tried to take the washcloth, her tiny little face crumpled before beginning to absolutely cry, at an age too young to have yet formed the connection that crying meant you could get someone to do what you wanted.
 
"A little," Xander said guardedly, worried he was doing something he shouldn't.

"Aw, come on, Ivy! Washcloths aren't for chewing," Alec pleaded gently. "Look, here's another toy!" He presented her one of her other more chew-appropriate toys. "See? Looky!" He made the toy dance for her, trying to catch her attention.
 
"That's really sweet," Daizi replied warmly. "Ivy, darling, let Alec have the washcloth, they're yucky," although she used the Arabic equivalent of the word, since the English version of a childish version of a word for disgust was never something she had needed to learn. It took some level of cajoling, but eventually, Ivy did release the washcloth in favor of the toy Alec danced for her, and Daizi just laughed, "I guess we should probably rewash that one. I don't think many people would want to dry their face with something a baby chewed on."
 
"It could be worse," Xander said, folding the last towel. He set it on the stack and stood up. "I got homework to do."

Alec set the washcloth aside to be washed and reached down to scoop Ivy up. He'd have to take his chance while he could. Once Dark got home, only Daizi would be able to pry Ivy away from him. "What do you think, Ivy? Do you want to go do homework with us? Or should we do something else and leave the nasty old homework for later?"
 
Ivy willingly allowed herself to be picked up, and as soon as she was close enough to Alec's face, she slammed her face against his for her 'kiss,' smiling her biggest smile.

"Do you think you can get homework finished with her in the room? She may try to eat it." Daizi asked, sitting down on the couch and reaching for the stack of towels only to find they had been already folded for her. Also surprised by this, she said, sincerely, "Thank you. You didn't have to do that for me."
 
"Ow. I never thought love hurting would be so literal," Alec grunted, rubbing his face. "You are passionate!" To Daizi, he said, "I think we'll be alright. She may even lend some inspiration! Right, Xander?"

"Yeah, sure," Xander shrugged. "I don't mind if she's there. And it's alright. Felt like it."

"Come on, Ivy! Let's go make meaningless scribbles on paper!" Alec trotted off with his sister, and Xander followed with the backpacks.
 
Daizi listened to Alec parade up to his bedroom with Ivy and Xander--who had been playing with her!--in tow, and then sat on the couch, picked up the washcloth Ivy had been eating, and found herself a little teary-eyed. She didn't break down crying, that trait of hers passed once the immense stress and wildly fluctuating hormones of life post-partum had settled down, but after so many months of stress about how they would adjust to her and so much fear, the way they just whisked her away because they wanted to be around her (not just to give her a break)... She hugged that washcloth tight to her chest and squeezed her eyes shut, allowing herself to sit in the feeling for a little while. Yes, she believed Xander wouldn't have brought Ivy upstairs had Alec not initiated it, but he didn't seem bothered by it, and she doubted very much that if he was bothered, Alec would have chosen to bring her anyway. And it was progress. It was so much progress.

And it was the best feeling.
 
Xander worked half-heartedly on his homework while Alec sat with Ivy on his lap. Alec was more-or-less trying to actually do his work, but Ivy was very distracting. He did his best to keep her supplied with papers he didn't mind if she ruined and even gave her a dull pencil to play with - until she started waving it and he realized how dangerous even a dull pencil was - as well as a couple of her own small toys. He talked out his homework problems with her, just babbling away about what he was doing. Xander mostly ignored them and let them get on with things.
 
Ivy was extremely interested in what Alec was doing and tried to touch everything she could, getting a little fussy when she felt ignored for too long, but generally was pretty easy going, and cooed back at him. Too young to notice how Xander more or less ignored her, she gladly participated in this new game until she grew tired, and gradually she flopped lower and lower down against Alec, and considering she wasn't able to sit unsupported yet, she was soon practically folded in half against Alec's hand.
 
"Alright, looks like time's up for studying," Alec chuckled. He shifted back, leaning Ivy up against him so she could lounge against him instead of leaning forward.

"And you're real sorry about that," Xander said as he shut his books.

Alec snickered. "Look who's talking."

Xander picked up Alec's homework for him and put it away, then Alec picked up Ivy, and they headed downstairs. It shouldn't be too much longer until Dark got home, meaning he'd want to see her anyway.
 
"Nah," Alec assured Daizi, still holding Ivy up so she could see where they were going. "We got plenty done! Did you have a nice time down here?"

Xander wandered off into the kitchen and started poking around.
 
"I put the towels away and then I really just listened to part of an audiobook," Daizi replied, sitting upright from the lounging position she was in, "How's my little girl? Did you have a nice time with your brothers? Did you learn a lot?"
 
"Yep, she helped me with my math homework. I just won't tell the teacher I got a helping hand from an outside source," Alec grinned, carrying Ivy to the window. "She won't even need to go to school at this rate."
 
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