How Green Becomes Wood

"I never want to say we're past the worst of it, because usually when I do things get worse again, but... I don't know. Right now things are okay." Daizi said, feeling fairly confident about her family.
 
Lex grinned. "Good. I'm glad of it." She sighed, looking toward the forest. "Toby's going to be moving out after he graduates. It's going to be a lonely old house. I've been thinking of selling up and getting a smaller one with a shop or something on the property. My one big hesitation is the neighbors. The ones on the other side are alright, and you guys are brilliant. Not to mention you make for a great excuse for my man to drop by randomly."
 
"I suppose with us right next door, if you ever get lonely you can just knock on our door and help look after this one," Daizi pointed out, nodding to Ivy, who at this point was sleeping hard, her cheek pressed so hard against Daizi it was likely she'd get the lines of her mother's coat as a marker of it, "and I'm sure Cooger'll be disappointed if you move away, but he'll live. Do you know where Toby intends to go? And if he goes far, if you'd want to move a bit closer to wherever there is?"
 
Lex groaned, dropping her head back briefly. "He says he wants to travel the circuit," she said blandly. "Wants to buy or build a van to live in or a tiny home or something like that. I guess I should be glad he doesn't intend to just sleep in the back of a van, but he hates driving. He'll take any excuse to not drive. So what's he going to do? Get a roommate or vanmate or whatever and put the driving on them? He says there's even a girl in his year who's planning on building her own tiny home and might help him out with his. A kid! Building a freakin' moving house!" She groaned again and then looked at Ivy. "I might stop by to hold her and chill out for a bit."
 
"That's quite an adventure," Daizi said, imagining it, "I used to have dreams like that. Dark, Cooger, and I, we all wanted... Well. We had this grand plan to start a traveling carnival. They had decided on it before we met, so I didn't get to be in the name, but it wasn't on me to argue. Obviously it didn't pan out, but... I think there's something about being young and wanting to go as far as you possibly can and experience as much as you possibly can. Life feels so much shorter at eighteen than it does at thirty-eight." She sighed, lingering on the memories for a moment before saying, "He's older than my kids, though, and I've only had kids for two years, so... Unfortunately I don't have much sage advice. But you are very welcome to come and take her off our hands once in awhile. I'm going to start going back to the office next month, so I'm sure once Dark is on his own every day, he'll appreciate the break."
 
"It's so much easier to run out and adventure when you're a teenager or in your twenties than it is at our age, too," Lex sighed. She glanced at Daizi. "It's going to be rough going back to the office, isn't it? But I bet you also can't wait. I'll stop by now and then to give Dark a hand entertaining the little one while you're out." After a pause, she asked, "Was it Dark Cooger Carnival?"
 
"I'm honestly thrilled and absolutely dreading it. But my boss is letting me start only going in two days a week, so I'll ease into it. I don't think I'd survive if suddenly it was five days a week, and it's not like I haven't been working and waking up early, but the commute, being away from everyone... it'll be different." She was silent for a little while, rubbing her thumb against Ivy's back and then, turning her face to Lex said, "Cooger and Dark's Pandemonium Shadow Show. Dark liked to argue it should be Dark and Cooger's, but I think it sounds better the other way around. But you can't tease them for it, he still has it painted on the sigh for his minature."
 
Lex chuckled at that. "So, he really does have a pandemonium show with three kids, a dog, a cat, a spider, and a wife," she teased. "By the way, how is the cat working out for you? Mine have been a fun handful."
 
"And believe me, I cause the most trouble out of any of us," Daizi chuckled, "It's been good. Her name is Kiki, she's very curious, but not particularly destructive. As I expected, Dark went through all this time saying no, saying he didn't want a cat, but now absolutely adores her, which makes sense, he's home so much of the day, and he's kind of like a big cat. Ivy tried to bite her tail once, but overall.. I think she just fits in."
 
"Dark and I weren't home, but from what I understand, everything ended up okay," Daizi said, "I guess Kiki tried to nibble Ivy's toes, so she decided to bite back, but was thankfully prevented from actually hurting her."
 
"Ah, a toe nibbler," Lex chuckled. "Soup hides under the bed and pounces on my ankles every night. Nearly tripped me up until I learned to prepare for it. She's not claw-happy, thankfully, but it's pretty shocking."
 
"I'm very grateful Kiki isn't like that. A friend of mine has this cat who loves trying to trip people and fights his way out of all of his collars, so you can imagine how precarious it is for me to visit," Daizi said.
 
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