How Green Becomes Wood

"No, I suppose you don't. But it's just such a surprise so early in the day." She nodded towards the stairs, "Ivy isn't even awake yet, and she always wakes up ungodly early. I don't know what it is about babies and waking up so early." She yawned, but then raised her eyebrows, even more surprised, "There's really no reason? You just woke up deciding to make a type of Egyptian bread?"
 
"Maybe they are worried about what they might be missing until they realize how great sleep feels," Xander suggested. He checked the recipe again before plopping the dough into an oiled bowl and covered it before putting it off to the side. "Okay, that has to sit there for an hour or until doubled in size. Then it's time to split it into a bunch of pieces and stuff. Yeah, I just felt like doing something new, and I thought this might be fun. Thought maybe you might like to decorate the cupcakes, and Ivy can give it a try, too, if she wants. Unless we gotta keep her away from frosting still. I guess I can always make up a reason."
 
Daizi snorted, "Are you sure I'm the one you want decorating? I'll probably make a bigger mess than Ivy would, and then Dark's heart will drop down to his feet. Ivy can't decorate, though, because she's not allowed added sugar until her first birthday."
 
"You seemed to enjoy it last time, so I thought you might like it this time," Xander shrugged. "Do you want any specific type of muffins? I can do... spice, carrot, blueberry, poppyseed..." The timer rang before he could finish listing muffin flavors, and he paused to take out the done muffins and slide in the unbaked ones.
 
"I do like lemon-poppy seed muffins..." Daizi murmured, "I always like it when desserts have multiple flavour notes, I don't like when it's just like... this dessert is chocolate! because a lot of the time, those are too sweet." She was just about to pour a cup of tea when the distant sound of a baby's cries reached them, so she set the kettle back down, knowing she could just heat it back up later, and said, "Do you remember how frail her cries were when she was just born? What a long time ago." before turning to get her daughter.
 
"She was tiny and delicate as glass," Xander mumbled. He set about mixing up the lemon-poppy seed muffins. They were a little more intensive than a blueberry muffin since blueberry muffins mostly just needed blueberries stirred in, but he didn't mind. She liked them. She'd get them. He finished making the muffin batter, got the cupcakes out of the the tin so they could cool, got the muffins into the tin, and waited for the cupcakes currently in the oven to finish. While waiting, he flipped to another recipe, shoreek, a sweet bred roll. By the time the cupcakes had finished cooking, he'd read the directions and got the ingredients out. When the timer went off for the cupcakes, he got them out, put the muffins in, and set about mixing up shoreek. That didn't take much time, so while the shoreek sat in its own bowl rising, he looked at possibly making shakshuka for breakfast.
 
"Yeah," Daizi paused. Before, she was really just joking about how absurdly loud Ivy could be now, but it felt different following what Xander had said. "She was." Then, she went upstairs to care for her. Once Ivy's morning routine was finished, Daizi brought her back downstairs, surprised by the smell of even more food, and although she wanted to ask more questions, she doubted he'd answe them any less vaguely than he had earlier.

Dark, though, meandered downstairs, since Ivy was now awake, and sleeping in while she was awake and screeching was impossible even if he didn't care about being around for her as much as possible. But at the site of what seemed like a million dishes, he blinked tiredly and asked, "Did I forget a holiday?"
 
"No, just felt like it," Xander shrugged, focused on what he was doing. "Don't worry. I made the mess. I'll clean it up. Should I make flat bread to go with the shakshuka?"

Alec wandered in, still rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "What's happening? It smells real good in here," he murmured, sniffing appreciatively. He did wonder if he was in the wrong kitchen or the wrong day.
 
Dark shook his head, fluffing out his hair, and then opened up the cabinet to take out prepackaged flat bread, which he handed to Xander, "There is no need, we still have some. We will still need ingredients for later in the day." Then he went to make coffee, switching back on the electric kettle for Daizi as he went.
 
"Why? What are we doing later in the day?" Xander asked, misunderstanding the point.

"I think he means he'd rather you didn't empty the pantry," Alec said, sneaking a peak at one of the rising bread doughs.

Xander batted his hand away. "It's not that much. Although, we are running low on flour."

"I wonder why," Alec mumbled as the timer for the muffins went off. "Ba, can I have some coffee too, please?"
 
"I will add it to the list," Dark said, stepping to the side just long enough to write it down, and then he returned to his preparations, "Of course you can..." He replied slowly, "Are you sure you want some? I recall last time you did not seem to enjoy it."
 
Alec nodded determinedly. "I do! I want to try it again."

Xander glanced side long at his brother doubtfully but did nothing to interfere. The food was almost ready for breakfast. "We're meeting Triscuit - I mean, Tristan tomorrow, right?"
 
"Alright..." Dark said, making a cup both for himself and Alec, and then, when it was ready, handed him the cup, held his up as a cheers, and then took a sip, himself quite accustomed to the strong, bitter taste.

"Yes," Daizi replied, bouncing Ivy on her knee, "Are you ready for it?"
 
"Thank you," Alec said, returning the gesture. He took a sip and tried to fight down the immediate urge to make a face. So bitter! So shudder-inducing! But he wanted to really try to like it.

"I guess so. As ready as I'll ever be." Xander put breakfast on the table. "Grub's up. Get it while it's hot!"
 
Dark looked at Alec for a few moments and then shook his head and took another sip of his own coffee, "You will learn to adjust to it, habibi, do not fear. Your body just needs to learn it is not poison."

"I do think it will be less stressful than... other meetings..." Daizi said, gently, setting Ivy into her high chair before getting her own breakfast. "But that doesn't make it not stressful."
 
Alec paused in mid-sip. "Poison? Why would you learn to like something that your body thinks is poison?"

Xander shrugged and made sure everything had everything before plopping down in his chair. "Yeah, I guess so. Guess he won't be a complete scumbag. He couldn't hide that from you. Just not sure about all this."
 
"It is not poison, but when something tastes bitter or very spicy or what have you, that is the body's way of saying, 'this probably should not be ingested.' That is true even of licorice, even though licorice is not in any way harmful. The more you consume that thing, the more your body learns to recognize it is not in danger, which allows you to enjoy the flavours behind the initial unpleasant one." Dark explained simply.

"Well, you're free to walk away at any point you want during it." Daizi reassured him, "Even if it is mid sentence, you are more than allowed to simply stand up and walk off. I don't really care if it's rude."
 
Alec took a couple of careful sips. "I like licorice," he remarked. "The taste thing does make sense." He set aside the coffee long enough to have a few bites of the eggy breakfast Xander had made. "This is good!"

"Thanks," Xander told Daizi, and he meant it. "I might do that. Kind of hope I don't have to."
 
"That is also why a lot of newer drinkers start out with lots of milk and sugar in their coffee," Dark explained, setting his cup down to eat breakfast, "and why Starbucks is so popular, especially amongst teenagers and young adults who are just starting drinking coffee. They want to feel like an adult, and coffee is adult, but they don't want to have to taste what coffee actually tastes like, and Starbucks does not make coffee well to begin with, so all of the syrups and milk and other additives make it palatable."

"Dark loves taking a stance against bad coffee," Daiz remarked mildly, then reached over to smooth Ivy's hair, "We have to bring her tomorrow, I think."
 
"Well, if I'm not going to like it regular, then I'm not going to like it with a pound of sugar, I don't think," Alec said, taking a long, determined sip. His eye twitched slightly. He took another.

Xander watched Alec, amused and wondering what was happening in his mind. "We're taking the mini? I guess we'd have to. Oh well."
 
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