How Green Becomes Wood

"Because some of my teeth are not real." Dark answered openly, "It is better now, because I have dental implants rather than the fixed bridge I had when I was younger, and the implants are," he began to gesture, but then decided talking about how he had titanium rods screwed permanently into his jawbone didn't seem like the best conversation while they ate, "They are just more permanent, and ideally you can eat like you would if you had real teeth, but it is still better to be careful. The recovery was awful."

"The first day he couldn't even have my soup," Daizi sighed softly, "He wasn't allowed any hot liquids. It was a full day of mashed potatoes and apple sauce. And his face was so puffy." She patted his cheek sympathetically.
 
"That sounds awful," Alec said flatly.

"The absolute worst," Xander agreed.

"Terrible."

"Torturous."

"Horrendous."

"Insufferable."

"Unfathomable."

"Horrifying."

"Wretched."

"Dreadful."

"Ghastly."

"Atrocious."

"Frightful."

"Abominable."

"Grievous."

"Unbearable."

"Hellacious."
 
Dark sat back, setting down his terrible little plastic fork. He opened his mouth once but then shut it again, squinting at his sons. "You sound sarcastic. They had to drill into my jaw bone so when the bone healed it would hold titanium rods into place."

"It was just the first day he couldn't have soup," Daizi added, "After that, it was a month of giving him almost the same types of food we give Ivy now, because the bone had to grow back in his jaw."
 
"Ugh," Xander shuddered. "That's awful!"

"Dreadful," Alec agreed.

"Atrocious."

"Frightful!"

"Straight-up lousy."

"Gruesome."

"Shocking."

"Horrid."

"We already said horrid."

"Oh. How about loathsome?"

"That'll work."
 
Frowning, Dark picked his fork back up and began to poke at his baked potato. At least this time they seemed to acknowledge it was an actually difficult procedure. His mouth wasn't fully healed for a good eight months afterwards. He just had expected them to respond more... Just differently, he supposed. "You only said horrid once. The other time you said horrendous."

Beside him, Daizi finally ate a spoonful of the soup and made a face. After having a few more spoonfuls, she slowly set the spoon down with a quiet hm noise.
 
"Oh, that's right, so horrid works," Alec nodded.

Xander smirked at Dark. "You never like it when we fuss, remember?"

"Speaking of fussing, what's wrong, Mama?" Alec asked.
 
"I do not like it when you fuss, but I do not mind some level of true horror," Dark replied, "I wonder how you would feel with your mandible being drilled into five times."

Then, his expression changing as swiftly and completely as a click on a view master he turned to his wife, "Are you alright?"

"Yeah..." Daizi replied slowly, shaking her head quickly, "It's weird. It's like... this soup tastes like being in labour."

"Like being in labour?" Dark repeated, shifting like he half expected he'd have to leap into action even though he knew there was nothing to do.

"Yeah, it's weird. It's not like I feel like I'm in pain, it doesn't taste like that part, but..." She took another spoonful and made a face, "It's very strange. I know it tastes nice, but it also tastes like being in labour."
 
"Oh no," Alec frowned, his brow furrowing. "Have you lost your love of lintel soup? Can you not stand it any longer? That's a really strong association."

"I can find you something else, instead," Xander offered, "or I can swap you soup for a potato. I don't mind."
 
"I don't know if it was ever a soup I loved, but... Yeah, it's a strong association. I hadn't expected it. I guess it was what I was eating when I started having contractions. That's weird, I hadn't expected that." She thought about Xander's offer for a few moments and then shook her head, "You eat your potato, Xander, I can eat something else. I don't like wasting food, though..."

"I can finish it so it is not wasted," Dark replied, "And leave you the bread bowl, I know that is your favourite part."

"Yeah, it is," She smiled softly, "I have no idea what else to get, I always get the soup. I'm glad it's not always lentil soup here, otherwise I'd be really upset."
 
"I guess from now on we'll have to check what the soup is before getting it," Xander said matter of factly.

Alec reached over to pat Daizi's arm. "I'm sorry, Mama. At least it wasn't a favorite soup!"
 
"I think I just need to start forcing myself to eat lentil soup more often so I am able to one day eat it again," Daizi frowned, mostly amused by this turn of events, "Because what am I going to do when lentil soup comes back around on their soup calendar?"

"Luckily, we have many years before that happens," Dark replied, squeezing her hand before standing to forage a new meal for her.

"The things I sacrifice for you, habibti." Daizi lightly chided her daughter who, oblivious, just made cooing sounds and sucked on her fist.
 
The twins snickered and ate their food. Alec paused often to make faces at Ivy or babble nonsense to her, but he still finished hos bread bowl close to when Xander finished his potato.

Finished eating, Alec took his trash to the trash can, and as he was throwing stuff away, something caught his eye. He stopped with a gasp, his eyes going wide.

"What?" Xander asked. He followed Alec's gaze, and his eyes narrowed. "Oh, no! Don't even think about it."

"Too late, I'm thinking about it," Alec chirped.
 
"What are we not thinking about?" Daizi asked, coming along beside the twins, "I need to know which side I'm on." Dark followed up behind them, pushing Ivy in the stroller, looking towards where both of the twins were looking apprehensively. If Xander didn't want to do something, but Alec did, that likely meant Daizi was going to push for the most chaotic response.
 
"It's a corn pit!" Alec cheered, starting forward.

Xander caught his arm. "No! No corn pits!"

Alec gestured toward the large, three-walled shed with a massive dried corn pit mostly contained in some plastic sheeting. No one was currently in it, and there was a seating bench where parents could watch and kids could take off their shoes. "Yes, corn pits! Come on!"

"It's for kids!" Xander protested.

"We're kids!"

"Little kids!"

Alec grabbed Xander's arm and pulled him forward as Xander pulled back. "Live a little!"
 
"If it is for children, it means I am absolved of attempting it," Dark mused, peering over into the mess of corn, "I have no desire to enter it."

"Ivy is a little kid," Daizi mentioned, using her cane to find the edges of the corn pit and tapping until she found its perimeter, then she bent down to touch the corn, "...I don't know if she'd be able to move in this, she'd probably just slip over."

"Yes, I am unsure if she has the agility for it." Dark mused, looking at the pile and attempting to figure out if it was safe for a baby to crawl around in it, or if Ivy would even enjoy it. Or if it was clean.

"Do you just sort of... jump around in it?" Daizi asked, turning her head to the side.
 
"Yes!" Alec cheered. Then he lunged forward, taking Xander off guard, and pulled them both forward and into the pit.

Xander cried "Nooo!" in the voice of a doomed man while Alec cackled madly. The corn splooshed up around them, and the pair found themselves squirming around in the yellow beads. Xander shoved at Alec, pushing him further into the corn, and Alec retaliated by dumping a handful of corn over Xander's head.
 
Dark couldn't help but chuckle as he saw their raucous tumble into the corn, absolutely certain now it was not the place for his not-quite one-year-old. Especially not while they played.

"Well," He nodded slyly, "I hope you two enjoy yourselves. I think I am going to look at the games. Be careful not to contract pink eye."
 
"No! Don't leave me!" Xander pleaded dramatically. He lunged forward and landed on his belly, reaching out to grab Dark's ankles. "Save me!"

Alec grabbed hold of Xander around the waist and started slowly dragging him back into the corn. "You can never be saved from the Pit of Corn!" he cackled.
 
Dark stared down at the two of them and half pulled away as though he were aghast they deigned to touch him. Then, watching their struggle, he took a step closer to the corn and in one quick gesture, caught both twins by the back of their shirts and scruffed them up out of it, "Why the corn?"
 
Both twins flailed a bit while finding their orientation but settled under Dark's hold.

"Because it feels awesome!" Alec declared, holding out his arms. Corn dribbled from the crevices in his clothing. "It's like running your hands through... tiny marbles or something. Glassy and silky at the same time!"

"With loads of sharp points," Xander grumbled, trying to shake some of the corn from his own clothing.
 
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