How Green Becomes Wood

Dark nodded, gently resting his hand on Ivy's chest, "Yeah, I will take you." He put his keys in his pocket and kissed Daizi's forehead, "Get some sleep. We are still both catching up."

Then he went to the door, "Come on," he said, and once they were heading to the care, he asked, "Do you two need anything? I do not mean emotional support or anything, I mean groceries or conditioner or those things. We did not have time to buy things in advance."
 
Alec considered. "I think we are fine with household staples."

"We're getting a little low on food stuffs, but nothing urgent," Xander told him. "I could make a list, and maybe tomorrow we could go shopping?"

"I'll double check to make sure we don't need any household items," Alec agreed.
 
"Yeah, we can go shopping tomorrow," he yawned, "It's probably good to get into the habit of normal life because she won't be in the hospital forever. And we have to be prepared for that."

Like Daizi, he had been taking a lot of little naps throughout the day, but he had definitely been getting less sleep than her, even though since he couldn't feed Ivy, logically he should have more chances to sleep. But he definitely felt awake enough to drive, otherwise he would have called Cooger to get the twins, rather than risk endangering them.
 
Xander snorted. "Life is never going to be normal after this. I don't think life has ever been 'normal,' at least, not since we came to live with you. It's weird; it'll always be weird."

"Not that that's a bad thing," Alec hurriedly added, following Dark.

"Nope, not a bad thing, just a thing. And you need more sleep."

"Maybe you should take a nap before you head back," Alec suggested.
 
Dark glanced at Xander, "I hope it is not always weird. I feel like the four of us have had some normal days where everything feels settled and comfortable, and I am certain we will have more of those days once we adjust to having her around. We can not live our lives always feeling like something is off, even if it is a good off."

He got into the car, started it, and as he drove back home, he said, "I guess I could try to, but I have never really been good at napping. Sleep does not come easy to me."
 
"You should try some nice, warm milk before bed," Alec offered.

"Or you could have Cooger punch you into a stupor," Xander suggested.

"Maybe a meditative ritual before bed."

"Or drink yourself into a stupor."

"Some people like to shower and use things like lavender shampoo or soap."

"Or have you tried drugging yourself into a stupor?"

"Perhaps a boring book, or a documentary, a boring but calm one."

"Or Cooger punching you into a stupor. No, wait, I already said that."

"I don't think addictions or brain damage will help the situation."

"Not sleeping for a long time can cause brain damage."

"How do you know that?"

"It was in one of those medical journals in the waiting room. You need sleep so your brain can flush itself like a used toilet and refill with clean juice."

"Um... gross."

"Yeah, but true, and that's when it heals and shrinks. It expands throughout the day. I wonder if you stayed awake long enough if your brain would explode?"

"Again, gross, and not the answer."

"Like we'd have the answer after he's been dealing with it for years. What do you wanna bet he's drunk warm milk while watching a boring doc right after a shower and meditating? Oh, and reading a book. One of those science ones that pretend to have a story but just want to describe the hardware."

"Not the point. I'm trying to offer potential solutions so he will be energized enough to drive."

"That's what taxis are for, if you're too clonked to drive."
 
Dark chuckled softly as he listened to the suggestions the twins came up with to get him to sleep, and it wasn't until they finished that he said, "You do not want to see the absolutely disgusting amount of alcohol I need to drink in order to get drunk enough to pass out. I do sometimes take melatonin, but it is hard to take those medications midday, because if they are going to work at all, they are really going to work, so they are not useful for napping. Or, I would figure, for when you have to wake up every few hours to care for a crying baby. But, thankfully, since I am so used to not getting enough sleep, I am rather skilled at functioning while tired. My mental illness has been training me for this most of my life."
 
"Getting used to something doesn't mean that it's okay," Alec pointed out. "Maybe once this mythical normalcy comes around, you could try sleep therapy."

Xander gave him a doubtful look. "Right... I'm sure he's never tried that."

Alec gave him an exasperated look. "Are you ever going to be positive?"

"I am positive he-"

Alec batted at him lightly. "Nope! Not like that!"

Xander snorted. "I still say his best option is getting clonked on the head."
 
He shrugged, "Until Ivy begins sleeping through the night, which we are a long distance from, we will have to be grateful for what we have. And what we have is insomnia." He chuckled, but then a bit more seriously said, "but I had been sleeping fairly well for most of this summer. For me, it is more about treating the underlying problems, because insomnia is only a symptom. And now, it's useful. Because even if babies were born able to sleep through the night, I do not think I would be able to do so right now."

He drove on, and then took a quick glance at Xander, "I think Daizi would be very... annoyed, if in order to get me to go to sleep, I was given a concussion."
 
"If you hit someone hard enough to knock them out, they are going to have a concussion," Dark said flatly as he pulled into their driveway, "but I will try to sleep, since I am home. It might be easier, since I am not too tall for my bed."
 
"Hello, home!" Alec called, following Xander out of the car. He hurried up through the front door, barely taking long enough to take off his shoes and touch the salt before bounding inside.

"How long until you go back?" Xander asked Dark as he followed Alec more tamely.
 
He shrugged, "I cannot stay away too long. Daizi cannot leave, so I would feel like a foul husband if I just left her to deal with our baby while I ran off to decompress somewhere else. It seems justified I try to nap here, since I have a bed I can comfortably fit in here, but beyond that and saying hello to Enkidu, it feels wrong to do much more than errands."
 
"Alright. We'll get the stuff together then," Xander said, wandering off. He tried to remember everything Daizi had said she wanted. He could maybe get a lap harp, but not in time before Dark went back to the hospital. Everything else he could figure out.

Alec was already finding the various items and putting them in a pile in the hallway as he located them. Xander got a box, and the pair made things a little neater and easier to carry. Then Alec went out back to locate some of the flowers for Daizi. Those were the most important.
 
Dark milled about, attempting to help gather what the Daizi had requested, but then, feeling the tiredness kick in now that he was back home, eventually snuck away and passed out in his own bed, and got a decent amount of sleep in, but he set an alarm to make sure he didn't sleep so much that Daizi would start to wonder where he had gone.

When he finally came back downstairs, his hair was slightly askewed and he still had a somewhat sleepy face, but he did feel a bit more rested, "Hey. Sorry. Do you have everything?"
 
Xander looked up from sliding a few freshly baked cookies onto the tray. "Sorry for what?" he asked.

Alec held out a cookie that was barely cool enough to handle. "Sorry for missing cookies? You didn't miss them. We just finished! Xander's putting some in a paper sack for Daizi."

"We have everything else in the box by the front door, except the flowers, which are there," Xander said, nodding toward the vase on the kitchen table.
 
Dark squinted at the cookies, "I think I slept longer than I meant to," He remarked, and then turned to look at the flowers, "those look nice. You picked them well. And Daizi will certainly appreciate the cookies." He yawned, "What time is it?"
 
"TIme for you to wake up, have a bite to eat, and head back to the hospital," Alec told him. "And Xander is really fast at cookies now. I even helped!" He looked at the cookie Dark hadn't taken, shrugged, and bit into it. "Snickerdoodle!"
 
Dark nodded, agreeing Alec's plan was a good idea, and comprehending last minute what he was offering, took a cookie off the trey and bit into it, "They are good. Thank you. Have you two eaten?"
 
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"Does cookie dough count?" Alec asked, indicating the bowls sitting in the sink and waiting to be washed.

"Nah, not yet, that was going to come next," Xander told Dark as he checked to make sure the oven was off. He set the pan next to the sink and wiped down the counter. "Any requests?"
 
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