How Green Becomes Wood

Dark and Daizi were apart just then, with Dark in the living room with Ivy and Daizi sequestered in her study. Dark said he didn't need anything, Daizi took some time before opening her door and, looking tired, thanked him but said she was alright, there was nothing she needed.
 
Xander attributed Daizi's tired look to juggling work with chasing a crawler and headed out to get his brother. Alec was far less excited today than he had been the last couple of days, and he slumped in his seat exhaustedly. His only reply to his brother's questions was, "Running a business is hard! Too many files." So, Xander let it go, amused, and drove them both home.

"Hey, can you find it in yourself to look after the mini a bit this evening? I think she tuckered out Mama," he added when they pulled into the drive.

"Sure, long as you help me chase her down," Alec agreed. "Actually, it's mostly my brain and my eyes that are tired, so it should be fine."

They headed inside to say hello to the family and see what was for dinner.
 
Dark was in the kitchen, chopping vegetables, while Ivy was sat in her high chair with a plastic bowl, a spoon, and sliced bananas, talking her through everything he was doing and praising her for how much she was helping. There were no bananas in his recipe, but she didn't need to know that. If she got to mash them, she didn't scream for attention while he cooked. He turned when he heard them come in, "Hello, how was work?" Daizi was nowhere to be seen, having sequestered herself to her study.
 
Alec flung himself into his chair. "Mentally exhausting! I didn't realize that flowers generated so much paperwork. I had to learn how to properly file everything. But other than that it was good. How about here?" He sat up and smiled at Ivy, waving his fingers at her.
 
"Once you get adjusted to paperwork, it becomes second nature. I enjoy filing, if I can have music on." Dark said, cringing when Ivy, in her exuberance to show off her mashed bananas, flung them. Enkidu sprung into action, but there would need to be some cleaning done where he could reach. "Things are... well. Daizi may be napping. Ivy pointed at a rabbit today."
 
Xander had already headed up to his room and was thus far out of earshot, but Alec caught Dark's pause as well as his word choice. "That's wonderful Ivy pointed at a rabbit today!" He tipped his head, eyes narrowed. "May be napping? Did something happen today?"
 
Dark inhaled softly, keeping a close eye on what he was doing rather than turning to look at him. It was a difficult situation to explain and he took time to consider his words. "Sometimes, people make a comment they intend to be light-hearted, but it instead hits somewhere vulnerable. A comment like that was made, and she is dealing with how it made her feel."
 
"I do not know, if..." He raised his shoulders before dropping them, scraping the chopped vegetables into a bowl with his knife, "Nothing I said seemed to comfort her much. He, essentially, suggested she has become boring. That is not what he said, but that is, I believe, what she heard. That she has becoming boring, or pedestrian, or common. He said she has been tamed."
 
Alec winced. "Ouch. Tamed. That's like the worst thing you can say to her about her. Poor Mama. She's not been tamed at all. Just... distracted and committed. Learning new things and new schedules."
 
"He asked her when the last time she pranked someone truly spontaneously, and she asked what he meant by that, and he replied her question proved his point." Dark explained, "Personally, I do not believe that is a fair metric, she pointed this out too, but when has she supposed to be pulling pranks? When the three of us were healing from an assault? When I was struggling afterwards? While Xander has been struggling, or while she had a baby on her breast? When we were not able to sleep for more than a few hours? While she was struggling?" He forced himself to take a breath and remind himself that Xander didn't mean to cut so deeply and that, he was sure, the teen would not have said it had he known, but still. What could be expected of her? When she was doing so much, "He had said it was having children is what tamed her, and I believe that is why it cut so deeply."
 
"Well, I guess in a way it did calm her," Alec said thoughtfully, "but that's not a bad thing. It just means spontaneity is harder. Not impossible. Just harder. And then you have to be spontaneous in a different way with a crawling baby. Because you are right. Recent events haven't exactly been conducive to that style of humor. Pranks and the like."
 
"You and your brother knew her for three months before she became pregnant, and, to my recollection, that happened, and almost everything else we went through last year happened rapidly afterwards. You both know her, but you do not... know her, because you have seen her when we have all been dealing with an unending stream of upheavals." Dark replied slowly, trying to be careful about his words, "Of course she is calm, now. We are all trying to hold onto the slightest bit of peace. Even wolves lay down to rest."
 
Alec sighed and stood up. He didn't know what to do with this information. He knew he was the one to open this can of worms, but what to do with it now? He couldn't think of a single thing to say that wouldn't either be potentially taken wrong or otherwise end in tears. "I think I'm going to go shower before dinner. Unless you need help with anything?"
 
Dark turned around to face Alec, ""She is the most remarkable woman I have ever met. I do not like seeing her struggle with doubts about herself based on minor manifestations of who she is at her core. It is distressing for me." He turned away again, resisting the urge to rub his face because he didn't want to have to rewash his hands. He her too much for it to not eat at him, "No, I do not need anything. I will call you when dinner is ready."
 
"Okay," Alec said quietly. He stepped out of the kitchen almost cautiously before heading upstairs to shower and clean up. He knew Daizi was remarkable. He'd known her far less than Dark and in less-than-ideal circumstances, but he knew even with his glimpse of her that she was incredible. Truly incredible, but he was also confused. She'd always presented herself as being so self-assured and self-confident, like no insult could ever truly hurt her because she wouldn't allow it, but lately, it seemed like every small remark was sending her into a teenager-like spiral of self-doubt. What happened? Had the self-assurance been an act? Had she always been this sensitive and had just hidden it better? Or had all of these changes done something to her? There had been a lot of changes, and he certainly didn't blame her if they had shaken her confidence, but why? He didn't understand, and he was, quite frankly, afraid to ask, because sometimes he felt guilty for not understanding.
 
In her study, Daizi was, in fact, not napping. Instead, she was reading her tarot cards, trying to steady herself, but it felt like a fundamental aspect of her identity had been called into question, and even though she knew it was just a stupid, one-off remark, just a joke, it felt overwhelming. She didn't want to call her friends about it, and just be told, 'well, you are a mom, now,' and for the past two years she had received so much praise for being giving. For making sacrifices. But she didn't account on, seemingly, sacrificing a part of herself she had valued so deeply. Her free time, the same amount of privacy, sleep, her body, all of that she knew. But she didn't know she'd have to give up herself. And she felt so stupid for being this upset, but the thought of not being the person she thought herself to be anymore was devastating.
 
The twins came down from dinner, Alec comparing the length of his hair and asking Xander how long he thought he should grow it out. Xander didn't have much opinion on that. He thought it was fine as long as Alec didn't turn into Fabio. Alec then had to look up who Fabio was.

"How do you know Fabio?"

"Everyone knows Fabio."

"If I'm part of that everyone, then, no, not everyone knows Fabio."

Xander took his usual spot and turned to Dark. "Do you know Fabio?"
 
"Fabio was hit in the face with a goose." Dark replied, feeling a sense of deja vu. "I know he was a model but my main understanding of Fabio is that he was hit in the face with a goose."
 
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