How Green Becomes Wood

"They look wonderful, thank you." Dark said, opening up the book to the first page and pointing, "Who is that, Ivy? Say, that is Mama!" He wasn't going to sit there and read the whole book with her just then, she was much to wiggly and excited to play with toys, but he wanted to look at least a few pages now, "And who is that? Say, 'That is me! That is Ivy!'"

Daizi sat at his side, pleased that he was so happy with the book, and although unlike Dark, her expressions were often very readable, this time even if they weren't usually, the absolute adoration of him was flowing out of her. He was such a great father. She wanted to marry him all over again.
 
"Ivy chose a very good gift," Alec confirmed happily.

Xander nodded. "Not too bad. It's got a banging good plot, too."

"You're really going to enjoy it," Alec assured Dark. "As you already noticed, it has a fantastic cast of characters."
 
"I am very excited to read it with her when she is in more of an amenable mood to reading," Dark said, setting the book down and standing Ivy up in his lap, "But right now she only wants to play. Yes, Ivy? You think, 'Baba, it is play time!'"
 
"We are going to," He said, standing with her, very glad to see her absolute joy. As he looked at her face, he saw the parts of her that looked like him, and he wondered, not for the first or last time: how could anyone hit someone like her? What kind of monster could see someone so small and do that? He hugged her close, shutting his eyes for a moment while she grabbed onto him, and then brought her down to the playmat so she could get some of her energy out. When he set her down, he said, "It is a nice day outside, we should go to the park later."
 
"Oh, the park would be a lot of fun!" Alec agreed before Xander pulled him back to help him clean up. The twins shooed Daizi out to go be with her husband or not as she pleased, so long as she wasn't working. They took care of the kitchen, cleaned everything up, and set Dark's gifts on the table where he could find them later.

Once they finished, they sat on the floor in the kitchen and leaned against each other in silence. This was their first real father's day, too. Last year only partially counted. This year was different because this year they had a real, true, bonafide father. It was weird to think about. Something that made both of them very proud... and a little sad at the same time. They could have been doing this with their father, if he'd allowed it. They could have been giving him tacky ties and mugs and whatever else, but instead, he'd given all that up for... what? A lot of empty pleasure, judging by Dark's reaction. Not everyone wanted to be a father, and that was okay, but he'd run like a shameful coward. And they were glad of it. Maybe in another world if they were different people, the twins could have been spending time with their mother and father in a "normal" house, and it would have been great, but they both knew they would have taken if for granted. Neither of them wanted to have gone through what they did, but it meant that when Dark's eyes lit up when he saw their heartfelt or joke gifts alike, he meant it. That he treasured the gifts because he treasured them. He treasured them, and they treasured him. It was a family life that they would never, ever take for granted, and one they would actively try to help Ivy see as well. It was hard to be grateful for something when you never thought it could be anything different, but they'd help her see it. At least, they'd try, but it was enough that Dark knew that they valued him as much as he valued them.
 
Daizi acted put out about being shooed away, but really she gladly went out to play with her husband and baby. The older Ivy got, the more fun it was to play with her, and it was fun listening to Dark's ridiculous, loving, baby voice when he played games with her. Ivy loved peek-a-boo, and she loved when a ball was rolled towards her. She didn't know quite what to do when Dark and Daizi sat on opposite sides of her--since she could now mostly support herself while sitting, although for their own peace of mind they still put a pillow behind her and were within arms reach if she started to topple.

It was these moments Dark knew he valued the most with her, simply getting to be on the floor and make her laugh. Taking time out of his day to be with her... There was nothing else he'd rather do than help her grow up. She may not remember it when she was grown, but he would. And once the twins were finished cleaning up, he was excited to spend time with them, too. And they would remember it.
 
Eventually, the twins came in, pretending they'd been cleaning the whole time and not just sitting on the floor letting Dark and Daizi and Ivy have undivided attention with each other.

"So, are we playing peek-a-boo all day today or what?" Xander teased.

"I think that's not a bad idea, but I think the park is an even better one! We can play peek-a-boo in the park," Alec suggested, grinning.
 
"Not all day," Dark teased, looking up from where he was lying on the floor, "She has to go nap eventually. But she would enjoy the park, and we can bring Enkidu, which he will also enjoy."

Daizi rose to her feet, "I'll go pack the diaper bag, it won't take too long, but we should also fill up water bottles, it's bound to be hot out, or at least get there."
 
"I got the water bottles!" Alec cheered, running back to the kitchen.

Xander looked down at Ivy. "Hey, Mini, what do you want to take, huh? It's gotta be nothing you won't mind losing, okay?"
 
Ivy squeaked, chewing on the turtle she won at the carnival (it had been thoroughly scrubbed, and was meant to be a bath toy), and Dark sat watching her, amazed at every single thing she did. For godsakes, she was sitting! And look how long her hair was getting! "Would you like to bring a ball?" He asked, and then said, "We should bring a picnic blanket, so she if she drops a toy she can have it back without us having to find somewhere to clean it."
 
"Sure, sounds fun," Xander agreed. "I'll grab the blanket and a couple of things." He reached down and gently tapped Ivy's nose teasingly.

Alec ended up spilling two of the bottles as he filled them. He cleaned up and refilled them properly before joining the others. Xander collected a blanket and a couple of things to keep teens and adults as happy as the baby as well as Enkidu's leash. In no time at all, they were ready to go.
 
Ivy laughed, bouncing herself enough that she fell sideways, but Dark caught her with one hand and helped propped her back up--which she, seemingly, found to be a particularly enjoyable game, as she repeated it.

When Daizi came downstairs, she announced that she had Enkidu's collapsible bowl so he could have water, too, when he needed it, helped pack the rest of the their items into the diaper bag, and then took Ivy while Dark set up the stroller and reminded everyone--especially the twins, the biggest blessing to their pale, Irish skin was Dark's tattoos, which taught him the importance of good skin protection--to put on sunscreen. There was a really nice park within walking distance--albeit, a bit of a long walk, but nothing they weren't ready for, and headed out that way in the nice sunshine. Ivy was old enough, now, that her stroller faced foward, so she was able to look at everything around her, rather than just up at her parents.
 
Alec bounced ahead of them with Enkidu. Xander usually walked Enkidu, but Alec was so full of energy, Xander handed him the leash and told him to shoo. For himself, Xander followed behind like a bodyguard. It was possibly a perfect day! Not too hot, not too cold.
 
Dark pushed the stroller, since like Daizi had said, she couldn't really do so and know where she was going, so she instead walked beside him with one hand on his arm.

They were an odd looking family, certainly. Two red haired kids surrounding the tattooed giant and his Witch wife pushing a grinning, normal looking baby in her stroller. But that's just how they were, although the thought didn't escape them, "We could dress up like Alice in Wonderland for Halloween," Daizi mused, because she always thought about that year's costume well in advance.
 
"I call mad hatter!" Alec called from up ahead.

Xander snorted. "As if. We're totally Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum."

"You hated those characters in both the book and the movie," Alec said, slowing down with Enkidu to talk to them more easily.

"I do, but that doesn't mean we aren't perfect for the parts," Xander pointed out.
 
"I think Dark should be the Mad Hatter," Daizi said, thinking about it, "and we can dress Ivy like the white rabbit. Or she can be Alice and I can be the Queen of Hearts."

"You should be the Queen of Hearts," Dark said, a sly smile on his face. His decision to resist finishing the sentence with something romantic was almost like he had just gone ahead and said it, because there was enough implication in his silence.

"Technically Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee are in Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found There, not Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, but I think it's acceptable to still have them," She continued, "Would you actually dress up this year?"
 
"If Ivy is Alice, I'll dress up," Alec promised.

Xander shrugged. "It's your favorite holiday, and we're part of your family. I'm up for it. Especially if you get Cooger to be the Dodo bird or something."
 
"I'll think about it, then," Daizi chirped, "Would you like to be Alice, habiti? We can make Cooger the Door Mouse or the March Hare. The March Hare would make sense, because he's best friends with the Mad Hatter!"

"I could be the King of Hearts instead of the Mad Hatter," Dark suggested, although the Mad Hatter was admittedly more interesting, he just liked to be married to her. Although he supposed plenty of their costumes hadn't been.

"Do you even remember what we did last year?" Daizi asked, "I don't remember it even a little bit."
 
The twins thought about it and shook their heads. "Sorry, I don't remember," Alec said apologetically.

"Did you wear costumes last year? You must have," Xander said, frowning.
 
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