How Green Becomes Wood

"I like to think so," Alec agreed. "He did seem to be having some fun, at least. And you seemed to enjoy the fact that he lived nearly an hour round-trip away." He tugged teasingly but lightly on her bathrobe sleeve. "Did you have a good day?"
 
"I--" She laughed, lightly nudging him, "appreciate some time where I can be completely alone. It was really nice to take a bath and not have a million other thoughts running through my mind. It's really rare for Ivy and myself to be in two different locations."
 
"That's true," Daizi agreed, returning the gesture without knowing it, "Maybe I'll even put the effort in so he can take her out without my going with... But I'm sure if he was around her as much as I am, he'd need breaks too. It's hard work."
 
"Undoubtedly," Alec agreed. "No matter how much you love us kids, we're really hard work, so no one can blame you for needing a break every once in a while. Otherwise, you'd just be tired and worn out all the time."
 
"I'm just grateful I live in a home where I can take a break when I need one. As fun as it can be to tease him about his intense devotion to her, I'd never choose him being disinterested over it." She sighed, temporarily lost in some thought somewhere, but then she chuckled and squeezed Alec's shoulder, "It could be worse. He isn't the sort of man to discuss her diaper changes in extreme detail to anyone who even thinks to mention how the baby's doing."
 
"I don't know where he went in the first place," Daizi replied, although it wasn't exactly true.

"I was just lying Ivy to sleep, the car ride settled her a little too much," Dark commented as he came down the stairs, "Thank you for cooking dinner, Xander."

Although he had really just confirmed her susipicion, Daizi turned towards him and said, "She's going to be up all night, now."

"It is better than keeping her up now and paying for it," Dark responded, kissing her cheek, which she allowed, but then pulled away.

"...Is it? Because I think she'll just be grumpy either way."
 
"Grumpy babies later, dinner now," Xander said, heading back into the kitchen.

Alec trotted after him and set the table. "It smells amazing! You're so good at what you do."

"You just say that so I'll do it more often," Xander said dryly, making sure everything was ready.
 
"We will have grumpy babies later," Daizi agreed, taking her seat at the table.

"But we get to eat dinner uninterrupted." Dark pointed out, and a bit of a sly grin entered into his features, and she could hear it in his voice.

"When did you become coy?" She asked, just before she took a bite. "Do you hear him?"
 
"I can't hear anything when I'm eating," Xander replied, doing his best to ignore his foster parents.

"Mmm, good food," Alec muttered. "And, yes, I hear him. One would think he has plans!"
 
"It is delicious," Daizi confirmed to him, playfully shoving Dark further away.

"I do not have plans," Dark commented, feigning indignance.

"Oh, then it's worse: He's happy."

"Why else do you think I am trying so hard to fix the issue?" He asked, and satisfied with himself, and not wanting to continue to annoy Xander, more seriously said, "The food is wonderful, Xander. Thank you."
 
"Is he allowed to be happy?" Alec asked Daizi, feigning bewilderment.

Xander rolled his eyes at his brother. "You're welcome," he told Dark. "Guess I'm getting better. Faster, at least."
 
"Well... I don't know," Daizi replied slowly and cautiously, "I know he's allowed to be content, certainly. And glad. At ease, even. But happy? She gestured to her husband, "He's nearly joyful!"

"It is a Friday evening and I get to be home with my family, why should I not be happy?" Dark asked deliberately, "I do not think cooking is necessarily about speed. But you are more confident. You have spent over a year cooking fairly regularly, of course you have improved to a more than noticeable degree."

As he said this, Daizi reached over and touched his forehead before confirming to Alec, "He's not sick."
 
Alec rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Hmm, but not all illnesses present themselves with a fever, just a lot of them. Maybe most, I'm not sure. There's a lot of illnesses out there. Is there an illness that presents itself in irrational joy?"

Xander snorted. "Being happy for the weekend is hardly 'irrational.'" He cleaned his plate. "Far as speed goes, it's just nice not to take two hours to make something the recipe says should take an hour."
 
"I don't think it's irrational," Daizi commented, "but it's different, him coming downstairs all sly like that. Did something happen upstairs?"

"No? Ivy was just in a particularly sweet mood when I was laying her down, and now I have two full days amongst all four of you. It is good." Dark replied, leaning back slightly in his chair, "And the biggest way to speed up cook time is planning and improving your skills at chopping."
 
Alec heaved a dramatic sigh. "I knew it! She really is his favorite. We've been replaced! There is no long a need for us." He put the back of his hand to his forehead as if faint.

"Uh-huh, it's horrible," Xander said dryly.
 
"No--" Dark said, concern entering his eyes, "She is not my 'favourite,' it is just a different dynamic. I doubt either of you would have much interest in being rocked to sleep, and I know well enough that what you need from me is different from what she needs, that does not make me prefer one over the other. I am certain you do not come to me for the same reasons you go to Daizi."

"Goose, they're teasing you," Daizi said gently.

"I know, but I still not not want them to feel badly: People can joke to hide their true feelings about something. She cannot speak to me in words, so I have to glean her emotions from how she behaves, and that is only why it is different. Looks and murmurs mean more when you cannot communicate otherwise."
 
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"Don't worry. We know you don't have a favorite child," Alec assured him, reaching over to lightly pat his arm. "Your favorite person is not one of your children."

"That's for sure," Xander smirked. "And we're not jealous or worried about it."

Alec shook his head. "If anything, it's nice to know."
 
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