How Green Becomes Wood

"Um," Milo murmured, feeling a lot of pressure in the question even though there wasn't any, "I guess we can do the easier rides first. So we can ease into it." He didn't really trust carnival rides, anyhow. To him it seemed suspicious how they can be safe despite being taken down and put back up so often.
 
Xander glanced at Dark and nodded. "Let's do that." He waited a moment and added, "I guess the safest ones first, yeah? And work our way up."

"They're all safe, right?" Alec asked Dark.

"Of course they are, but they aren't all safe for the mini," Xander pointed out. "We should take her on her first ride first of all." If it was safe for Ivy, it would be easy for Milo. If Milo didn't want to go on any rides, that was fine, but it'd be nice to give him a chance.
 
"The rides are examined at every stop, I believe," Dark said, "of course they are safe, if you follow directions." Mostly, anyway.

"What do you want your baby's first ride to be, Goose?" Daizi asked, holding onto his arm.

At this question, Dark set his gaze out around the midway, taking some time to think. The Ferris Wheel was a safe bet, but that ride was at its best at sunset, which it was not. Then, he spotted it, "The carousel. She has to ride the carousel first."

That was his favourite, anyway. He didn't ride it himself anymore, he was too large for the small horses. But the shape of it, the music, the function. It was perfect. The very first part of his carnival he had ever carved was a carousel, and he had remade it many times in the years since, trying to perfect it, just as he tried to perfect the entire miniature.
 
"Excellent!" Alec crowed. He glanced at Dark. "But you can't sit on the horses. Will they allow you to stand between them and hold on?"

Xander was already walking toward the carousel. "Wanna go on the carousel, Stitch?" he asked. "Or we can stand back and take pictures."
 
"Ivy cannot ride a carousel horse all on her own," Dark replied, bending down beside the stroller to stroke Ivy's cheek with his finger, "It will be my job to stand beside her and keep her supported on the horse. And she will love it."
 
"Good," Alec said in satisfaction. He got in line, bouncing excitedly. "Ready for your first ride, Ivy? Ready?"

"Are we too big for the horses?" Xander asked, slower to join Alec.

Alec pointed to the sign ahead. "We'll find out soon enough, but I think we'll fit! And this one has a couple of benches. We can sit on a bench."
 
"You will be fine, they are designed so most adults can ride them," Dark answered them, "I am just outside of the bell curve. Ride the horse since you can, it is better than sitting on a bench."

"I'm still going to ride the carousel horse," Daizi said cheerfully.

When they got onto the carousel, Daizi sat on the horse next to the horse where Dark was carefully holding Ivy on, and even with how subtle his facial expressions were, even Milo was able to pick up on how thrilled he was to get to do this with his daughter. Ivy didn't seem particularly bothered or infused, but it wasn't really about her. When he thought about all the little things he hoped to do with his baby a year ago, this was one of them.
 
Alec and Xander found a pair of matching horses behind Dark and Daizi, and Xander made sure Milo was comfortable before climbing onto his own horse. He stated he felt ridiculous and grumbled a bit, but when it came down to it, he sat up straight on the horse and thoroughly enjoyed himself. Alec made no pretenses, thoroughly enjoying the horse and ride despite how simple it was. Plus, this was Ivy's first time! Both twins understood the significance of that even if Ivy didn't. It was a perfect ride.
 
Milo felt a little awkward on the carousel horse, like he was too old for it, even though there were plenty of other adults and bigger kids riding it. He just felt a little like he was being looked at, regardless of if he was or not.

When it ended, Dark took Ivy off the horse and as they stepped off the platform, he lifted her above his head and asked her if she liked it before asserting she certainly had

Then they rode a few more intense rides, and Milo agreed to sit with Ivy during them, because he felt way too uncertain about their construction to risk it, and Dark and Daizi felt a bit uncertain about leaving Ivy with him, but since rides were three minutes at the most, they eventually agreed with the plan, because it meant they could ride together.
 
Alec declined to go on a couple of the more intense rides, choosing instead to stay back with Ivy and Milo. Xander went on nearly all of them, but one of them he chose to stay with Milo, as well, stating he didn't care much for the ride. In truth, he didn't want Milo to feel too left out. The ride wasn't one of his favorites, anyway, so he didn't mind. Alec did go on the ride Xander chose not to, so Milo had to hold Ivy anyway, despite her brother being right there.

After the last ride, Alec asked to play some of the games before food. Not all of the games, just some. He was looking forward to it and dying to trying to win some of the prizes on his own. Xander quietly told Milo to keep an eye on Dark, who was a game master.
 
Milo didn't feel left out, although he supposed, in a way, he was. At every ride, he was asked if he wanted to get on it, and everytime he said no, Dark and Daizi asked if he was comfortable watching Ivy, because they would be more than happy taking turns. And without fail, Milo would tell them that he didn't mind and that he liked babies. He didn't really understand them, but he thought they were fascinating.

What he liked being at a Carnival, anyway, was the pictures he could take. There weren't many places where a keen eye could capture a person screaming, a person laughing, a person crying, and a person being sick in a trashcan all in one picture. The way people dressed also intrigued him. People came in t-shirts and shorts and before they knew what had happened, ended up with squid hats, painted faces, and sun burns. Much to their parents' dismay, little children ended up sticky despite all attempts to prevent it. There was a lot to be witnessed, both on off the rides, and Milo was glad he had brought extra film.

And, he liked taking pictures of the carnie's faces when Dark managed to win a supposedly rigged game.

To Dark's great pleasure, when Ivy played the Lucky Duck game (because, really, that game only required grabbing things, which Ivy was very good at), she managed to grab ducks that corresponded with one of the big prizes. "She is like me," he had said, in a rare moment where this fact did not worry him. (Ivy ended up in tears because the prize she wanted was the rubber duck. She ended up with one of the lowest-ranking prizes, a small, plastic, turtle, designed to float in water. This made the loss of the rubber duck easier to mourn.)

Shortly after the duck game, they decided to eat. Ivy was hungry, anyway, so it seemed like the best time to take a bit of a rest, during which Dark made all of them reapply sunscreen.
 
Alec and Xander both piled on the sunscreen without being told twice because sunburns hurt. They'd had plenty of them over the years, being pale, Irish red-heads, but it wasn't something they liked. They helped each other to make sure they had everything covered, and then Xander had Milo pick what they should eat first since he hadn't gone on nearly as many rides as they had. Alec chose the deep-fried twinkie for dessert before they'd even finished their dinner. It was sickeningly sweet, but also strangely addictive.

After they'd eaten. Xander put his eye to winning a ridiculously oversized stuffed animal from a dart game that he declared was going to be for Sloan. He wasn't even going to tell her, he'd just leave it on her porch with a note attached. He didn't win the biggest stuffed toy - probably because Alec was laughing at his declaration - but he did win a large, green alien toy that was the size of his torso. He grumbled a bit but managed to tie it around his neck so it looked like it was getting a piggyback ride.

Alec went for the ring toss to win a massive white poodle that had to be the size of Enkidu. He won it, and he declared his prize was going to be for Aunt Ciara. After a couple more games, Alec had managed to amass a balloon hat of indeterminate shape (the carnie said it was a ship, but there were questions about the shape), a marionette with a terrifying face, and a wooden snake with joints that pinched his fingers. Xander won a foam lizard on a string, a thankfully deflated beach ball with squids on it, and small platypus plushie. He actually quite liked the platypus plushie.
 
The food was fun, although Daizi found it a bit sad: it was much more enjoyable when she was pregnant and having bizarre cravings. Strange cravings went wonderfully with the odd sorts of foods they had at carnivals. That was simply an experience she'd never have again, but at least it was still enjoyable.

Dark won sufficient prizes for Daizi, Ivy, and helped the twins and Milo win what they wanted, but most of the prizes he gave away or simply chose not to take. He wasn't in it for the prizes, he was in it for the thrill of the game. That is what mattered to him. After they had played all of the games they were interested in, though, he suggested they drop everything off in the car before hitting the rides they hadn't done yet, including the Ferris wheel.

That ride Milo was comfortable riding on, but they couldn't all share a cart, so Daizi suggested the teenagers all ride together first, and if they wanted, they could have another ride with a different seating arrangement after.
 
"I'll sit in the middle," Alec volunteered, glancing at Xander and thinking of his touch issue.

Xander nodded, thinking of the stashed pile of random toys in the back of the van. He was so glad he'd bought a van! Between all of their prizes - especially thanks to Dark's talent and skill - there was no way they'd all fit in the car, let alone with the extra person. "Yeah, you can get fully squished in the middle."

Alec snickered and took the lead. "Let's go! Milo, you are not going to believe the shots you can get from the ferris wheel!"
 
"I've gotten a lot of really cool shots, I think," Milo said as they got onto the ride, not thinking at all about their seating arrangement, "I like places like this because people are up to so many different things all at once... I guess I'm not surprised that Mr. Dark really likes it here, because I've seen his little wooden carnival, but it's still kind of a surprise."
 
Once they were seated and secure, Xander leaned back to enjoy the ride. "He'd do a traveling carnival if he could, but that's like a fantasy story."

Alec smiled and held onto the safety bar. "Life can be a fantasy story if you dream hard enough. It just needs a little sparkle." He looked up. "Like a sunset!"
 
"I think it'd be really hard to raise a baby in a traveling carnival," Milo replied, even though he understood they were discussing a complete fantasy, "They'd turn out like--Well. Me, I guess." He stretched up in his seat as they crested the top of the wheel, "It is beautiful, though."
 
"I dunno. It'd be a little different since your home would be traveling with you, but, yeah, that'd be rough on a baby," Xander agreed.

Alec looked up at Milo. "Wow. You're way taller than I ever realized!"

That made Xander look, and he tipped his head in surprise. "Dude. Where were you hiding that? You just grew like a foot."
 
"Why are you going down? There's so much to see!" Alec urged, nudging Milo's shoulder gently.

"It's cool," Xander said with a nod. Then he pointed out toward the carnival. "Seriously, though, those tops look awesome from up here."
 
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