How Green Becomes Wood

Dark helped Daizi into the car, "It does smell a bit... off, but there is a lot of space. Dark would fit comfortably in a back seat in here."

"If you put a middle seat down," Dark modified, leaning against the side of the car and looking inside, "I would guess Sloan would come over first, I would guess she knows more about your plans today than our neighbor. Although I suppose that depends on if she is home at the moment."
 
"If Toby is home and practicing on his board or skates, he'll totally be over first. He loves checking out new things. Ooo, fun buttons! And it even has a CD player still!" Alec grinned, examining the console. "You could get yourself a collection of car CDs so you don't have to be distracted by the radio."

"Good point," Xander agreed. "Extra long CDs so I don't have to even think about changing them when alone. It'll be easy when I have a passenger. Which I expect to be a lot."

Alec just grinned happily. "Are you going to let anyone eat in your car?"

"Maybe. I dunno. Looks like plenty of people have done it before, but not right after I get it cleaned," Xander told him.

Alec got out of the passenger seat. "Mama, you should come sit up here! These seats are surprisingly comfortable. Is it as comfortable back there as it is up here?"
 
"They are pretty comfortable," Daizi agreed, "I probably would've been more comfortable in this car when I was really pregnant than I was in Dark's. But then again, I was always uncomfortable then, so who can say."

Dark, still standing on the outside of the car because there wasn't a universe where he, a 6'8 man, was crawling around the back of any car, nodded towards the trunk, "We can get you a 6-disc player for the car. You can load a number of CDs into it and change them with a single button. You are limited in options, but there is no more danger in it than there is in adjusting the volume. You may want something to support your phone, though, to make GPS easier."
 
"Good idea. I'll get one, but for now, I set it in the cup holder," Xander said. "I like the disc player idea. I'll have to think about that one."

Alec climbed in and moved all the way to the back. "Wow. You can fit seven people in here if someone's willing to sit in the middle in the far back. And there's leg room everywhere! I highly approve of your choice."

Xander snorted. "Thank you. Now, who wants to go for a ride? Just around the block."

"Me!" Alec cheered.
 
"We'll have to take turns," Daizi pointed out, "someone has to stay home with Ivy. But since Dark got to test drive it with you--I presume--then it's only fair that he wait first."
 
"He did get to test drive," Xander nodded. "Mama, do you want to go first?" He glanced at Alec, really wanting to take him first, but Daizi deserved that respect and honor.

Alec smiled, understanding Xander's glance, and nodded. "You should go first!"
 
Daizi scratched her eyebrow, "Alec just said the car can fit seven people, there are not more than seven of us here. I only said we need to take turns because there's not a car seat, and we can't leave her unattended. But I don't mind waiting if you wanted to go one at a a time, or sitting in the backseat."
 
"Okay, you sit in the front, Mama, and I'll take the back," Alec said.

Xander shrugged. "One of you or all of you, I'm fine either way. Hey, Enkidu? You wanna go for a ride? You can sit in the back with Alec."
 
"If you're sure," Daizi said, exiting the back of the car but leaving the door open to let Enkidu hop inside. Then she stopped by Dark to kiss the top of Ivy's head and tell her, "Mama is going to be right back, habibti."

Then, after Alec had gotten out, she got into the passenger seat and buckled the seatbelt, "They are very comfortable seats, aren't they?" In the back, Enkidu paced and sniffed every aspect of the car he could reach until Daizi told him to lay down.
 
Alec buckled himself in and tested the latch. "I feel quite safe, too," he admitted. "Certainly a lot safer than being on the bus. Say, does this mean we don't have to take the bus anymore?"

Xander started the car and checked all his mirrors, being hyper-cautious as he backed up and started around the block. "I guess so. Shame. I do so love sitting on the bus."

Alec chuckled at Xander's sarcasm and looked up. "Huh. We have one of those video player things. That always seemed like a bad idea for whoever was behind this car. We're never using that, are we?"

"I never even looked to see if it worked," Xander admitted.
 
"I don't understand wanting to watch something in the car anyway," Daizi commented, feeling around the area where she was sitting, and trying not to laugh at the idea of accidentally hitting an EJECT button, "It will be weird for Dark to drive to work alone again, if you start driving your own car to work, he has really enjoyed driving the two of you... But I know--" she jumped slightly when she accidentally rolled down the window, but quickly put it back up, "he would want to do the exact same thing."
 
Alec grinned as the window rolled down. "It's a shame we can't do both at the same time," he said once the window was back up. "That would be awesome! I guess we could clone ourselves."

"I don't think we need more of us," Xander smirked. "Especially since we're basically a clone of each other."
 
"I don't think we can afford two more kids," Daizi laughed, "especially since then Dark would need a new car, too. It'd be him, Ivy, myself, Xander 1, Xander 2, Alec 1, and Alec 2, and then we're at seven people. How would you decide between the four of you who gets the middle?"
 
"Take turns, starting with playing rock, paper, scissors," Alec answered immediately.

"I think I'm good with just us," Xander said, coming to a stop and waiting for another car to go before taking a turn. "And I hate the middle. I bet Xander 2 would hate the middle, too."
 
"I guess Alec 2 gets the middle then, since he's the clone of the original," Daizi said, "Maybe Ivy when she's old enough to be out of the car seat but not old enough to be the tallest. And I'm sure she'd hate it. But if Xander 1 is driving, and I presume Alec 1 is in the passenger seat, I'm not sure where we would all go. I think it'd be unfair to put Dark all the way in the back, he's got the longest legs out of any of us. Ivy is safest in the middle row, so I suppose it would be the two of them in the middle, and myself in the back with the clones."
 
"Wow, you really thought this through," Alec said, leaning forward. "Are you sure you don't want another two of us? How about adopting two more?"

"Oh, heck no!" Xander cackled. He turned down their road and toward the house. "Not unless they fall into their laps like we did. Besides, we're kind of out of room."
 
"I am absolutely certain," Daizi laughed, "I love you both so, so much, and you know that if at any point either one of you said you wanted to be adopted rather than fostered, I would run to the courthouse, but I do not want more than three kids. I think if someone else fell in our laps, we would help set them up with a different infertile couple, and wish them the happiest life."
 
"I've thought about it sometimes, the adoption thing," Alec said thoughtfully, the calmest he'd ever approached the topic, "and love you both and love that you feel that way, but it just doesn't seem..."

"It doesn't feel quite right?" Xander suggested.

Alec nodded. "Yeah. I'm not sure why, and I used to feel guilty about it, but I think I just want to love our family the way it is now. Plus, I think the times I've felt most strongly about wanting to be adopted by you, for me, it was actually just me trying to run away from whatever problem was in my head at the time, not for any right reason."

"Agreed." Xander carefully pulled into the driveway and parked, not unbuckling until the car was off.

"This car rides really smooth. This was a good pick," Alec told Xander.

Xander grinned and patted the car. "I think so. What do you think, Mum?"
 
"Yeah..." Daizi replied, "it does drive nicely. You picked a great car, Xander." She unbuckled her seatbelt, wondering what she should think about the emotions that were stirred up by hearing a definitive, it doesn't feel quite right stirred up in her, and trying to push them down temporarily. It was something she already knew, or supposed she knew, with the responses the thought of it always received from them, but it was another thing to hear it flat out. It was their right to decide and she respected it, but that didn't mean she didn't feel it in her core. All she could think of were what-ifs. What if they were in an accident after turning 18, and the hospital wouldn't let her or Dark visit? Or worse?

But she didn't want them to feel any guilt about their decision, so she took a breath and got out of the car, "Alright, Goose, it's your turn!"
 
Alec started to climb out, but Xander waved for him to stay. "Might as well stay. Come on." So Alec grinned and settled back in his position while waiting for Dark to get in the front seat.
 
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