How Green Becomes Wood

"I think she would like much of it." Dark said, a bit of sadness just barely creeping into his voice. He had adjusted to the practicalities of living with and loving a blind woman, but even still, sometimes his heart still felt some longing for her to be able to experience the world the way the rest of her family could. "Tifla, you have to tell Mama all about what we saw today, okay? It is your job."

As they came to the end of the tunnel, there was an oversized replica of a shark's head in front of a backdrop and an aquarium employee offering to take family pictures for everyone exiting the tunnel.
 
The twins glanced back at the walkway instead of ahead to the photo opportunity and turned to Dark. Both had identical looks of hope and longing and spoke nearly simultaneously. "Can we go again?"

"There was way too much to see!" Xander stated.

Alec nodded. "Way, way too much to see!"
 
"Nice!" the twins cheered and scrambled around to find the way back so they could get on the walkway again. They didn't even pause to look at any of the other displays, focused on getting around to where they'd begun. When they found the start of the walkway once again, they waited for Dark to join them and then stepped on. This time, they focused on the sides of the watery tunnel instead of above. They had a great time, this time trying to guess what fish were which until Xander spotted one.

He reached out toward Dark to get his attention without touching and pointed. "Red snapper! There it is!"
 
Chuckling softly, Dark walked after them, only slightly hurrying after them. It was such a beautiful thing to see them so free and full of amazement. They were just kids, his kids, getting to be kids. In that moment, he didn't care much about the fish, all Dark wanted to watch was their delight.

Then, once they were back in the tunnel, Dark looked up towards where Alec was pointing, "That?" he asked, clarifying he was looking at the correct fish, "That is a snapper? That is just a normal fish." He looked back at his sons, "See, this is why I did not know what an eel was!"
 
"It is a very normal looking fish, all right," Xander agreed, watching it swim around. "Nice red color. Very tasty."

"It's really weird to think how tasty some of these really beautiful creatures are," Alec admitted, watching a swirl of fish. "It's like eating a piece of art."
 
"I feel similarly in botanical gardens." Dark replied, peering down into the stroller, "This tunnel is causing your sister to fall asleep, that is a comfort." Looking back around at the tank he said, "In a weird way, I am envious of the performers we saw. It must really be something to swim in a something like this."
 
"Good. No rage-induced struggles," Xander said with a little nod, not taking his eyes from the coral beds. "Those corals... they practically look like gardens, don't they? According the the signs on a different tank, most of these things that look like plants are actually creatures. Including the coral."

"Whoa! no way!" Alec breathed, leaning over the railing a little to get a better look. "That's so cool! You're right, Ba, it's something else to see an underwater garden."
 
Dark looked at the bright coloured coral, "It is difficult to find words to express it. It it an entirely different world. I am sure it is not as peaceful to live in as it is to look at, but I understand why it was able to lull Ivy to sleep."
 
"It's so pretty. It almost... almost makes me want to get an old video of something like this," Alec murmured.

Xander glanced at him and remembered. A video of the waves and the sea. It was a good video. "Yeah," he murmured quietly, "but we won't need it again."
 
"I do not need to take awkwardly posed pictures." Dark promised, "And the walk to the sea lion show gives Ivy more time to sleep. We would have to take her out of her stroller if we chose to take the picture there."
 
"That's not a good idea. We should let her get as much sleep as possible," Xander agreed.

"I hope the sea lions don't wake her up and she can sleep right through it," Alec stated worriedly. "It'll be so fantastic! Which way?"

Xander pointed the correct direction, pausing a couple of times as they walked to read the signs affixed to various tanks. He was particularly fascinated by the puffer fish, which he learned used water to puff itself up, not air as was often depicted, and only puffed when threatened.
 
"I suspect they will wake her, but she will be glad to see them," Dark said, walking after them and occasionally slowing to a stop when he saw something he found particularly amazing. Maybe it was the lighting, but he looked younger, somehow, as he pushed the stroller after his sons, talking about the marine life. When they made it to the sea lion show, it thankfully wasn't so crowded that Dark had to worry about blocking anyone's view, since with the stroller they needed to sit in the front row. Since the show didn't start immediately, they had a few moments to sit and relax while everyone filed in. "Do you want to eat after this?"
 
"Yes!" Alec grinned. "All this walking really works up an appetite."

"I hope the cafe thing is themed," Xander remarked.

"If it is and we get fish, I'm going to pretend to be a shark," Alec said mischievously, settling down in the seat between Dark and Xander. They were not comfortable benches, but it was a break from standing and walking.
 
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