How Green Becomes Wood

"You wouldn't just have one dance with me?" She asked, not fully pouting because she knew it wouldn't work on him like it did on her husband, and it felt a bit inappropriate anyway, but still a little bit pleading.
 
Xander heaved the biggest sigh he could muster and pushed himself up to his feet. He brushed off his clothes and held out a hand toward Daizi. "Alright. Let's do this thing, then." He tried to pretend to be grudging, but a hint of amusement shone through.
 
Daizi giggled, excited he actually agreed, and Dark leaned forward to let her know Xander had actually reached out a hand to her.

Gasping slightly, she tried to fight back her excitement, and before beginning to search out for where his hand was, with her own hovering, she asked, "Are you sure?"
 
Xander took a deep breath, stealed himself, and took her hand firmly in his own. "I'm sure," he stated, helping her up. His constant working with Ivy had helped raise his tolerance on his hands, at least. It still felt highly uncomfortable, but he could do it!
 
Absolutely glowing, Daizi held his hand much more loosely than he had hers, so he could easily pull away when he needed to, and began to dance with him. Although she did her absolute best to be relaxed about it, it meant the world to her. Anybody could see that.

Rather than expecting him to touch her waist, she just held his hands, and she tried to walk him through a very simple, but fun, dance, because it was better than just simply swaying awkwardly. It wasn't one where foot placement mattered very much, it was really just stepping towards and away from reach other with the occasional little twirl. Being the dancer that she was, she did add her own little sway into it, but nothing that would affect him, she was just having fun.
 
Xander had been mentally psyching himself up to do the whole hands-on-waist thing, but when Daizi instead began to show him a different dance, he was pleasantly surprised. This was actually kind of fun! He tried to ignore the idea that people were watching him. That was easy when he was trying not to step on her feet or trip. Focusing on the dance kept him fully occupied. He picked it up pretty quickly and was a surprisingly good dancer for someone who didn't dance much expect behind closed doors or when Alec pulled him into it. He grinned, following Daizi's lead easily.
 
Sitting on the grass with his back against the tree, in an echo of what his friend had done six days before, Dark filmed a quick video of Daizi and Xander dancing, but unlike Cooger, he didn't send it anywhere. It was just for him, because although he felt deep confidence in the knowledge this wasn't the last time Xander would dance with his mother, he knew it was something he wouldn't have always done. Who knows, he thought. It might mean something to Xander, too, decades from now.

Daizi danced and twirled with the grace and confidence of someone who had both been formally taught to dance and who never had to see how she looked, and therefore had never developed fears over if she looked stupid. She was graceful, well-practiced, and joyous. When she danced close to him again, she said, "I love you, Xander," and then twirled away again, not making him linger in it.
 
Xander blushed deeply and missed a couple of steps, but then he recovered. He hesitated a little while as the dance continued. Then, when they were close again, he said, "I love you, too, Mama." And he gave her an extra twirl for the fun of it.
 
When he twirled her again, she laughed openly, but all she wanted to do was squeeze him into the tightest possible hug. The fact it was impossible was okay, though, because this moment was more than enough. At the end of the song, she gently squeezed his hands before letting go, "Thank you."
 
"You're welcome," Xander said quietly. He felt like he'd given her something even though this day was supposed to be about him. That was surprisingly okay to him. It felt good. Seeing her so happy and smiling made him happy, and Dark had even laughed! It was unintentional, but awesome! That was worth it.

The band played a couple more songs that Xander actually knew and liked, but after that, they started packing up and getting ready to leave. The gig was over.
 
For a few moments, Daizi stood facing him, then gently tugged on his sleeve before going to sit back down besides her husband to enjoy the rest of the concert. After looking down at her for a moment and her overwhelming happiness, Dark raised his head and gave Xander a proud nod. It had been a kind thing he had done for her.

As the concert began to pack up, he rose to his feet, helping Daizi up, "Where do you want to go to eat now, Xander?"
 
"Habibi," Daizi said brightly, slipping her bag over her shoulder and unfolding her cane, "It's whatever you want to do. And we're trying new things right?"

"I would be glad to get a ridiculous American Burger with you," Dark said. It wasn't something he'd ever choose, but this wasn't about him.
 
Xander grinned, far more pleased than he would have expected. "Excellent. Then to the nearest burger joint! I think there's one called Scotty's near here. They do good grease."
 
Dark's heavy eyebrows flicked together in mild concern, "Is grease something you look for?"

Ignoring him, while they walked back to the car, Daizi asked, "Does driving still hold the same mystique it did before you bought your own car?"
 
"Yes," Xander told Dark simply, not choosing to expand on exactly what that meant. There was good grease and bad grease, lots of grease and little grease, and there were pros and cons to available or unavailable grease. It was a whole greasy thing. To Daizi, he replied, "Not quite, I guess, but still some. It's still pretty cool to get to drive my own car, but I think I appreciate getting driven more now, too."
 
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