How Green Becomes Wood

Noticing the yawn, Dark set down his sketchbook with only the broadest of outlines put down on the page, "If you think you may fall asleep, you need to lay her down."

~~

"I'm not sure you'll be able to convince your father to let you have a go with the torch. I'd let you try, but he'll be a harder sell." Daizi laughed, following Xander's directions to housewares, "I always worry in this area of thrift stores. Once I cut my hand on an unsecured mandolin."
 
"I'm fine. I can keep holding her," Alec protested.

~~

"I got you," Xander promised. "This area's pretty safe. Everything's in tubs on the shelves. Nothing's on the floor. Careful, knives in this area. Here's pots. Oh, here we go. Pans and cake pans and stuff. Hang on." He started sorting through the pans until he found three tube pans in differing levels of quality. "How about one of these?" He held them out to Daizi so she could feel them.
 
"Okay," Dark replied, holding both of his hands up, "I am not doubting you, you just seemed tired. I am not trying to take her off of you." He was pleased, anyway. Truly, Dark did not want Alec to put Ivy down, because he wanted to capture him holding her like this, and it would be easier if they just stayed still long enough for him to draw it.

~~

"Good," Daizi sighed, "Can you imagine if every time you reached onto any public shelf, it was like those movies where they make the character put their hand into an unknown box?" She took the pans from Xander and ran her hands over them, "We probably want one that's non-stick. They're easier to clean." All of the pans really felt more or less the same to her, but she doubted they'd be using it too terribly often. They were all springboard, which she knew was important for an angel food cake.
 
"Surely you soothed her to sleep the night Daizi and I went out while on vacation," Dark commented idly, taking a quick glance up at them as he worked.

~~

"I'll trust you," Daizi said, "While we're here, is there anything else we need to get?"
 
"Sure, but I didn't just sit and hold her. I was afraid she wouldn't sleep as well, so I put her down pretty quick," Alec told him.

~~

Xander thought a moment and shook his head. "Can't think of anything. We should probably get going so we don't get caught by the storm anyway. Unless you want something?"
 
"Ah, I see." Dark nodded, changing positions as he drew, "Enjoy it. People like to remind me one day will be the last time."

~~

"No, I'm alright. I just didn't want to make you do a second trip if it wasn't necessary. Yalla, let's go home." As she turned to walk back towards the checkout, there was a low rumble and drops of rain began coming down.
 
Alec looked at him curiously. "Why? It's going to take her a lot longer to outgrow you than some other smaller fathers."

~~

Xander nodded and followed her. He paid for the pan before Daizi could and checked the sky. She was right about the storm, that was for sure. He checked to make sure it was safe and then half guided her back to the van. "At least I won't have to wash the van now."
 
"Mm, physically." Dark replied, "but all of us can only hold her while she wants to be held. One day will be the last day she wants to be soothed to sleep."

~~

"Is the van dirty? I hadn't noticed," She teased, hurrying to the car as the rain picked up.
 
"Oh, that makes sense." Alec snuggled Ivy close. "That must be especially sad for you, but I guess for every last day, there will be a first day for something else."

~~

Xander gave a slight sarcastic laugh and opened the door for her because he could. Once in, he shook the water from his face and started the car. "Straight home?" he asked Daizi, guessing the answer.
 
"It is sadder for Daizi, I think. But we both know it will not be for..." He frowned down at his drawing and feel silent for a little while as he tried to fix whatever bothered him. "Sorry. It will not be for some time."

~~

Since Xander opened the door for her, she leaned over to unlock and open the driver's side for him, so by the time he made it around he could just get in, "No, let's take a joyride," she said sarcastically, only able to hear the thunder that came shortly after a flash of light through the clouds.
 
Alec smiled and fell silent, dividing his attention between Dark and Ivy. His arms were getting tired, but he waited until he really felt he couldn't hold her any longer before telling Dark.

~~

Xander smirked at Daizi. "Careful. I might take you up on that," he warned her, not completely serious. He pulled out of the parking spot and started toward home, even more cautious with the rain.
 
When Alec couldn't support Ivy any longer, Dark set down his sketchbook, his drawing of his son and daughter nearly completed, and gently took Ivy from him, shushing her gently to make sure did didn't wake while they passed her. It was all rather pointless, though, as the moment he sat down, a crash of thunder shook the windows, made Enkidu scamper into the room, and started Ivy screaming awake.

~~

Daizi laughed lightly at Xander's threat, "Are you threatening to run away with me?" but quieted at the loud crash of thunder. In conjunction with how heavy the rain sounded on the car, she could guess how bad it must have been. Eventually she forced herself to say, "Enkidu must be very stressed."
 
"Enkidu, Enkidu, it's okay!" Alec tried to assure the dog. "Everything is okay! It's just noise."

~~

"Yeah," Xander agreed, slowing a little but making sure he wasn't so slow as to be a traffic hazard. "If he's stressed, he probably woke up the mini, then."
 
The thunder and lightning frightened Ivy, who had never experienced a storm this intense before, so Dark paced around the living room with her, speaking softly to her and explaining it is just the rain.

~~

"If the storm didn't do it itself," Daizi commented, "I think this is probably the worst one we've had since she was born."
 
Alec left Ivy to Dark, choosing to sit with Enkidu and try to calm him as best as he could.

~~

"She'll be alright. Scared, but okay. She's got her Baba, after all," Xander pointed out. He peered out at the rain. "Man. It is really coming down. We're okay, but wow."
 
Enkidu handled the storm better than Ivy, although he did pant heavily while leaning against Alec. Ivy was less manageable, but Dark was pulling out all of the stops, even singing to her as he paced all through the house bouncing and rocking her.

~~

"I'm not worried for her," Daizi told Xander, but then frowned and shook her head, "No, that's not true. I am, I have to be, but I'm not... afraid, really. I think every adult encountered a thunderstorm as a baby, and I think very few are seriously harmed by it. But I still don't like thinking of her scared like that. Her crying does something to my brain." She shrugged, tipping her head to the side, "I'm glad we're in a car. Sometimes when it rains hard like this and I'm in public, in one of those big warehouse type stores where it echoes, it gets really disorienting for me."
 
"I hadn't thought about that, that the sound would be disorienting," Xander remarked. "You know, there's this movie, it's not a good one, but it was a fun adventure type, with this superhero called Daredevil. According to the movie, he could see better in the rain. Although I don't remember him ever being in a warehouse."
 
"Dark and I watched the Daredevil show together," Daizi replied, "I've not seen the movie, but the show was very good. It's what got Netflix to really start implementing audio descriptions, which helped me."
 
"There's a show?" Xander asked. "Didn't realize that. Anyway, it was kind of cool, even if it is total crock." He paused as he took a moment to pass a car going way too slow. Once passed, he said, "Blind people have cool abilities without falling into poisonous... toxic... sludge stuff."
 
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