How Green Becomes Wood

When she was back on the ground, she crawled back over to Dark, attempted to pull herself up, and toppled over.

Watching the stunned look on her face, Dark only said, "Oh no." Before taking another sip of coffee and reaching his hand down to her, "How about we try that again, Hummingbird."

~~

"Hm." Cooger replied before laughing, "What? Are you saying chickens ain't relaxing? Ah, I'm just messing with you. Just not all that used t'sharing, that's all. I'll be around in a few."
 
"She's getting better every day," Alec said before going to get himself breakfast. "The coffee smells good today! Can I have a bit?"

~~

Tristan thanked him and hung up before assessing. He took the time until Cooger arrived to mentally sort out what should go where and in what order. Most of the work Dark had put in the day before remained, but some things had gotten sorted and shuffled around just thanks to being accessed a lot and moved around. He also now had a better idea for a layout with the boxes and how they could go so he could reach everything more easily. As it was now, he could get around, but not all the flowers were in his reach. Then he got out the push broom and started slowly cleaning up.
 
"If you would like," Dark replied, helping Ivy to her feet, "but do not waste it. Good girl, Ivy-Qadira. You are quite strong, my darling girl."

~~

Cooger arrived as quickly as he could, carton of eggs in hand. Unlike Dark, who showed up in a neat suit every day, Cooger was wearing old, paint-stained jeans, a black baseball cap reading MUFON, and an unbuttoned flannel worn over a t-shirt which read Monsters of America and was decorated with a map of the United States and the Cryptids who called different places home.

"Hey dude," He said, reaching out to shake Tristan's hand, "How's it goin' man? It's been awhile."
 
"Thanks!" Alec said brightly.

"Do you have to be so shiny first thing in the morning?" Xander growled, rubbing his face.

Alec sobered and looked away. Quietly, he got himself a small bit of coffee and sipped on it slowly and stubbornly.

~~

Tristan was completely unsurprised by Cooger's attire - in fact, he rather liked his shirt even if he'd never wear it himself - and he accepted the handshake warmly. "It has been! I am afraid you are too good at your job. There has not been much for you to fix around here or at my apartment."
 
"How does it taste?" Dark asked, glancing towards the kitchen while bending down and lifting Ivy up with only one arm. He didn't like the tone Xander had taken, but he was technically talking to Alec, so. He supposed it was an improvement.

~~

"Man," Cooger shook his head, taking off his hat since they were indoors, "Ain't that the worst part of being a handyman? At some point, I'll have everything in this town fixed, I'll put myself outta buisness. But lemme know if you ever want anything painted."
 
Alec made a little face. "It's not as bad as it was the first time I tried it. It's still... strong. Quite strong." He glanced at Xander. "Want a sip?"

Xander shrugged and took the cup. He took a sip and coughed. "It's... a good flavor. All of it." He handed back the cup. "Please don't go crazy."

~~

"Trust me. You are at the top of my list for any renovations or fixes," Tristan chuckled. He shifted back a little and gestured to the crowd of daisies. "And for correcting other people's mistakes, like this one. By the way, do you like daisies? Or know someone who would appreciate a dozen daisies?"
 
"See, you are learning it is not poison. Slowly." He looked down at his daughter, "There is none for you, sweetheart. You are too little for coffee, and none of us are ready to see what someone so small is like on caffeine."

Daizi chuckled, sitting up right and hugging Enkidu, "I never learned to like coffee."

~~

"I like Daizi," Cooger replied with a chuckle, setting the eggs down on the counter as he looked around the shop, "I don't know how I feel about dozen of her. Probably Dark's dream. Or nightmare. Uhhh..." He scratched behind his ear, "I could probably take some to my mom? Or..." He shrugged, averting his eyes for a moment. Lex might like them. But he didn't know how she'd react if he just... showed up with flowers for her. "I can also just feed 'em to the chickens."
 
"I think I still like tea better, but this stuff is interesting," Alec said, still sipping cautiously.

Xander ate his breakfast and then made his way back upstairs.

~~

"I suppose feeding them to chickens is better than letting them wilt and die," Tristan mused, letting the "Daizi" joke roll right on by him.. He rolled forward. "Now, about the other many dozen daisies..." He started outlining to Cooger what he needed where. He needed wide pathways and the colors sorted as well as possible while keeping the boxes evenly spaced. Several of the plastic boxes needed their water changed, and he simply did not currently have the strength to do that. He could manage multiple on a good day, but today was not a good day. After that, he would need help cleaning up the floor. It was a lot of simple labor that needed to be handled by someone with a stronger back, no pain,and preferably working legs.
 
Although both Dark and Daizi worried about Xander, they chose to let him be. He expressed he felt like he was talked at too much, so they decided to give him space, rather than following and checking on him. It was hard, because he hadn't proved himself great at processing when left to his own devices, but they wanted to demonstrate they had heard him.

~~

"Chickens eat a lot more than you'd think they would. And I've been thinking about adopting a goat. If I breed her, I get milk, and even if I don't, she does the lawn work, and she'll eat even more than the chickens do." He stretched deeply and then set about doing the tasks as directed. He lacked his brother's elegance, but he worked quickly and didn't slack off.
 
Alec managed not to go quite as crazy this time as he had the first time, in part because he knew better what to expect, but he was still wound up pretty tight. He took Enkidu out for a run to work off some of the jitters and then played with Ivy for a while.

Xander spent some time alone listening to music and turning his brain as off as it would go. After an hour or so, he did eventually come back down. He still avoided Alec a bit, but he was at least willing to be in the same room for more than two seconds. He just didn't want to interact just yet. Everything felt so sore and raw.

~~

Tristan asked a few questions about goats out of mild curiosity and helped where he could, but he spent a lot more time sitting back and letting Cooger work alone than he normally did. It was, after all, why he had asked for Cooger's help and why he was paying him. When he wasn't talking to Cooger, he finished filling out the ledgers and counting out the money. He deducted what he was going to pay Cooger before putting the money in a pouch to be deposited in the bank tomorrow, leaving just a bit to make change next weekend when he opened again.
 
When it was Ivy's naptime, Daizi went upstairs to nap at the same time, needing to catch up on sleep, while Dark worked on cleaning up downstairs. When Xander came downstairs, he gave him a small nod and handed him a rag, thinking giving him something to do would help give him something to focus on.

~~

Cooger was more than happy to chat as he worked. Unlike Dark, who remained mostly tight lipped until it was necessary not to, Cooger was more than happy to talk about any old thing, joking comfortably. He and Tristan didn't spend that much time together, but Cooger nonetheless talked to him like they were old friends as he set about all the tasks that needed doing.
 
Xander accepted the rag with a nod in return and quietly set to work. Working on something was exactly what he needed, and it was good to be near people, even if he didn't want to admit it. Dark's silent presence was perfect.

~~

As tired as he was, Tristan enjoyed Cooger's presence. Normally, trying to keep up this much conversation would have been tiring, but Cooger had such a laidback presence that it didn't affect Tristan like it normally might. In fact, the conversation helped to distract him and keep his mind off other things. Later, he'd go home and lay still and collapse internally for a while, but for now, he had someone to talk to while handling life problems. He enjoyed Cooger's vibe a lot, and that was one of the reasons why he hired Cooger whenever he could. It was hard to find someone so... calmly energetic while also getting business done.
 
Eventually, after they had been hard at it for a little while, Dark asked, "Have you solved my puzzle box, yet?"

~~

One of the major reasons why Cooger and Dark got along so well was because of how relaxed and chatty he was, somehow it always made Dark feel better to know he wasn't expected to be talkative, because Cooger had it covered. And it made it easier to learn English, originally. "Did Dark send you the picture from Ivy yesterday? Shucks, was I glad to not be the one in charge of her when that happened. He would've had my hide."
 
"Almost. I put it aside for a bit, Alec borrowed it, lost it, and I had to find it again," Xander admitted. "I forgot where I was and had to retrace my steps before I could go forward."

~~

"No, he did not. I do not think we have quite reached the level where he will send me pictures of her randomly, but he did show me quite a few while we were working together," Tristan replied, looking over his glasses at Cooger as he rechecked his inventory count. He pulled one leg up over the other before asking, "Why? What had she done?"
 
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"Is it wrong of me to take pleasure in how long it has taken you?" Dark asked mildly. "Keep at it. If you never solve it, I lose satisfaction."

~~

"I think he just doesn't have enough people in his life to care about seeing her in the same way he cares about showing her off," Cooger said, deeming that not sharing too much information about Dakr, because it was only his guess. "That little girl got into a tube of paint. She was absolutely covered in it, Alec was holding her out from him like she was Simba. I was telling Dark that the picture is probably enough to put Ciara in the hospital, with what I know 'bout her, but he said she actually made a joke about it."
 
"You can take all the pleasure you want as long as you remember that it took me this long because someone lost it," Xander remarked.

~~

That was enough to catch Tristan's full attention, and he took off his glasses to look at Cooger. "Ciara? Tara's sister?"
 
Dark side-eyed Xander, "You allowed someone to lose the product of months of my work for an extended period of time?"

~~

Cooger nodded, "Yeah, she comes around every once in awhile. I keep trying to get her to chill out a little bit, you know? 'Cause I've never been accused of being a particularly formal guy, Dark is covered in tattoos, and Daizi is a witch, so like, ain't none of us gonna judge her for letting her hair down." He set a box down and then turned to Tristan, wiping his hands on the back of his pants, but he paused awkwardly at the look on Tristan's face, "Is... there a problem with that?"
 
"I just said Alec borrowed and lost it," Xander pointed out. "Of course, his 'borrowing' needs to include a little more 'asking,' if you ask me."

~~

Tristan cleared his throat and put his glasses back on as he turned back to the spreadsheet on his clipboard. "No, no, of course not. I just had not realised she was a part of their lives. I believe Mr. Dark might have mentioned something about her when we first met, but I have not seen her since high school. She always was very... uptight, so if you can get her to relax, I would be most impressed."
 
"Months of my work," Dark replied, feigning a deep wound, "Missing. Forgotten."

~~

"You'll probably see her in a few months," Cooger replied with a shrug, "Daizi and I are kinda similar, because Daizi is my family, the twins are her family, so the twins are my family. And you and Ciara are their family, so you're our family. Daizi feels like that, too. Promise you'll get invited to their events, so start figuring out what to buy a baby for her birthday, kid." He didn't mention the vow renewal, because he didn't know if Tristan knew about it, and it wasn't his secret to share, although he guessed Tristan might end up with an invitation to that, too. "They had a Christmas party last year, 'cause the twins celebrate Christmas, Ciara came to that. I'm pretty sure she visited the NICU, too, but I don't remember, now."
 
"I sure didn't forget it," Xander grumbled. "And we did find it eventually. It was in that box of cereal you hate."

~~

"That is certainly an abrupt growth in family to go from basically none to discovering twin nephews and then realizing you are now part of a whole group," Tristan chuckled, but a tiny flutter of unease tickled his gut. He shook it off. He'd deal with it later. "I suppose I should start thinking of gifts as I doubt flowers are a good idea, even edible ones."
 
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