How Green Becomes Wood

"I believe it's another situation where the point is to play, but I often just refuse the prize. I find little point in filling my house with objects I care little for only to say," He used Ivy in place of his own hand gestures, which made her laugh, "These are the things I own. I care the about the game, not about the prize.'
 
"I guess I can see what you mean, but I like having trophies for my wins, and a lot of the time, I like what they are giving out," Alec said brightly.

"I doubt there will be anything here that I'd want to take home, but we'll see," Xander said mildly. "Bragging rights are good with me."
 
"If you win as much as I do, eventually you run out of space," Dark replied bouncing Ivy as they walked, "You have to pay close attention, my daughter, so you learn the tricks."

As expected, most games didn't have many prizes, and the ones they had were minor, but true to his word, Dark committed to playing them out of simple enjoyment. The easier ones he played while still holding Ivy, but soon he needed to set her down to really lock in.
 
The twins took turns joining Dark for the games, but Alec seemed distracted. He did his best, but he was not on the ball as much as usual. Xander was the same competitive Xander, and while he couldn't beat Dark's scores most of the time, he was giving a valiant effort and usually managed to beat whatever game they were playing.

During one game while Dark was fully focused on the game, Alec stepped aside to stand with Xander. He unfolded the schedule and pointed to a spot. Xander looked at the paper and then at Alec.

"Seriously?" he asked softly.

"Why not?" Alec whispered back. "She'd smoke the competition!"

Xander hesitated, glancing at Dark and Daizi. "And those two?"

"Mama would be fine with it but sad she couldn't watch, and you know Ba would have a freak-out over her crawling on non-regulated grass."

Xander considered the idea. "If you can get her away from them, then I'm all for it."

Alec grinned broadly and put away the schedule. When Dark needed to hand off Ivy for the next game, Alec offered to take her. "Here! I can hold her for once."
 
Dark looked down at him, then at Ivy. Before handing her over, he asked "Would you like your brother to hold you? Yes? Okay."

Daizi smiled, picking up one of the balls and tossed it from hand to hand, "I want to try and throw it."

"Here, let me angle you," Dark told her, shifting Daizi's shoulders and lining her up across from the bottles. Then he took her arm and mimed her arc she should take, "Throw it just like that, straight ahead."

"When do I let go?"

He mimed her through it again, pausing at the correct point in the arc, "Just here."
 
"Hey, Ivy, you want to come with us?" Alec asked Ivy with a grin. He winked at Xander.

Xander took the cue and decided to help out. "There's another game we want to try. Ivy can come along with us. We won't go too far."

"It's going to be loads of fun!" Alec told Ivy.
 
"Of course," Daizi replied, not imagining the twins could ever possibly be getting up to anything suspicious with their sister, "You three have fun."

"We will be here," Dark added, fixing Daizi's shoulders before taking a step back for her to throw the ball.
 
The twins set off at speed with Xander taking the schedule and looking on the back for where the event was.

"Okay, we need to find a giant corndog. It's behind that," Xander said, pointing the way. "There it is."

"This is going to be so awesome!" Alec grinned. He held up her favorite toy. "We even have this!"

Xander took the toy and tucked it quickly out of sight. "You can't show her that now. She'll want to hold it and not let go."

"Good point," Alec acknowledged. "Anyway, Ivy, all you have to do is crawl at super speed! Just like we practiced!"

Xander raised an eyebrow at him as they rounded a food stall with a giant corndog on top. "When were you practicing superspeed crawling?"

"When has she not been practicing superspeed crawling?"

"Fair point."

Alec bounced Ivy lightly. "All we're doing is crawling in a straight line on command. How hard is that going to be?'

Xander frowned at him. "I have so many questions I am too scared to ask."

Alec snickered. "It's going to be great!"

They walked up to an open area with soft green grass surrounded by parents with their babies. Short little dividers were stuck in the ground to make ten lanes, and a race was currently in progress. One parent crouched at one end with a baby, and the other knelt on the other end calling to them. The babies crawled from one parent to the other, hesitant and distracted, but most eventually made it to the end. Alec, Ivy, and Xander found the booth where they signed up for the next race and waited for their turn.

"You have to be on the other end," Xander said, sticking the toy in Alec's pocket for him. "I can keep her steady at this end, but you'll have to catch her."

Alec nodded and smiled at Ivy. "We're the only siblings here as far as I can tell. Everyone else is so old!"

Xander snorted. "Careful how loud you say that."
 
Ivy didn't understand anything about what was happening, and looked curiously at everything and at the other babies. When she was set down in her lane, she tried to sit up to examine it, too interested in what was going on around them to even think about crawling down the lane, which was fortunate, as the race hadn't begun yet. But it'd definitely be hard to get her to actually get going, with how interested she was with her immediate surroundings.
 
Xander sat with Ivy keeping her lightly corraled with his arms and letting her look around as much as she wanted. He hoped that getting a good look would help her feel ready to rock and roll. The baby to their right was a chubby little girl who sat munching happily on her fist, completely unbothered by what was happening around them. To their left was a nervous little fellow clinging to his father as he stared around, wide-eyed and vaguely traumatized looking. Xander chilled with Ivy, letting her know there was nothing to be worried about.

Alec hurried down to the opposite end and sat down, waiting. It took a bit to get the rest of the parents and babies in place, but finally, they were almost ready to get started.

Then it was time to start!

"Ivy! Ivy! Look here!" Alec called. He shook her favorite toy, trying to get her attention.

On the right, the unbothered baby continued to be unbothered. He started forward for a few crawls and then stopped and sat down. The nervous baby on their left wouldn't let go of his father. Two other babies got partway down the track and then started staring at each other and trying to reach each other over the little divides.
 
When the race began, it took a few moments of Ivy looking at Alec, confused, before she began to crawl at him. There was a lot of stimuli, the other babies, the dividers, all of the people calling out. She began to crawl down the track but then stopped and turned back towards Xander, reaching out at him with one hand, babbling at him and looking a little overwhelmed.
 
"It's alright, Mini, good girl!" Xander told her encouragingly. He pointed down the track. "Go to Alec! You can do it! Go to Alec!"

"Ivy!" Alec held out his hands to her, the toy still in one hand. "Ivy, come on! Come here, Ivy! You can do it!"
 
Ivy gurgled and looked back at Alec and finally began to crawl towards him, although she was still confused and hesitant. But Alec really wanted her to go to him, so she was doing her best, while still looking back behind her. By the time she was in the middle of the track, a few babies had already pulled in front of her.

Meanwhile, Dark had made his way through pretty much every game, and Daizi was hanging on one of his arms as he pushed the stroller. Taking a glance around, he asked, "I wonder where our children made it to."

"They couldn't have gotten far, but they're just doing something with Ivy. I'm sure they're fine," She replied, resting her cheek against his shoulder.

"I am not worried, but if we are finished here, we should group back up, I would rather see what they are doing than linger around."
 
"Good girl, Ivy! Well done! Keep coming!" Alec cheered her on, trying not to look at the other children. His eyes were on his sister only. "There we go! Good job!"

Xander bit his lip to keep from trying to encourage Ivy. That would just confuse her more. Silently, he urged her forward. As long as she reached the end, she'd be a winner! Maybe not technically a winner, but more of a winner than the ones who never made it.
 
After heading off in the direction Dark recalled his twins walking in, Dark eventually found himself staring up at a giant corndog, feeling mild contempt for the creation for ruining the vibe of the pumpkin patch. Then something behind it caught his eye, and standing with his shoulders slumped slightly, as amused as he was disappointed in himself for not predicting this, could only mumur, "Ya Allah..."

"What?" Daizi asked, turning her face up towards him.

"They are racing her."

Pressing her lips together for a moment, Daizi repeated her question, "What?"

"I do not know how better to explain this to you," Dark replied, bringing her along to where Alec was standing, "There is a race of babies, our daughter is entered. Habibi," He came up behind Alec, "What."
 
"Cheating!" Dark exclaimed quietly, gesturing towards the race-track, "Our daughter is not a greyhound!"

Daizi whacked his arm softly, pulling him back, "He's not actually mad, habibi, just confused. It's not every day your child is whisked away to become an athlete. Am I able to call to her?"

Ivy stopped again, seeing her parents, and wide grin crossed her face.
 
"I'll stand back, I'll stand back!" Daizi laughed, taking a few steps back, "Ivy-Qadira!" She called out, "Come here, habibti!"

Ivy looked directly at her mother, who was holding out her arms, and squeaked, crawling more quickly in that direction. She wasn't looking at Alec anymore, or at her favourite toy, just at her mom. Because it had been kind of scary, this strange place, with the little walls, and everyone yelling. She didn't know what she was supposed to do, but then she saw her Mama and Baba, and they were always there when she was nervous.

Dark pinched the bride of his nose, chuckling despite himself. This was ridiculous, the exact sort of thing the twins would get up to behind his back. Who even thought up baby racing? Admittedly, it was rather cute. Even he couldn't deny that. With one hand, he slightly redirect Daizi to be in a slightly more correct position, "Where's my sweet girl?" She asked, "Where's Mama's sweet baby Ivy?"

Ivy crawled as quickly as she could, just wanting to be with her Mama.
 
"Yay, Ivy! Go! Go! Go!" Alec chanted. He knew she wasn't looking at him, but he still wanted to be involved, and when she reached the finish line, he scooped her up and held her long enough to at least pretend like he was the one she was going for. He cheered, bouncing her lightly, and then zoomed her over to her mother.

Xander came around to join them once the race was officially declared over and everyone was collecting their wandering tykes. "I think she won!"
 
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