How Green Becomes Wood

"I will, one day." Dark said, for the second time that day.

Daizi laughed, reaching over to stroke Ivy's hair and rub her back, "No, she isn't. She is very used to getting all of the attention in a room. I hope she hasn't been bothering you. She's very social."
 
After a pause, Jack added, "Maybe I'll go, too, and you can give me a tour. Then you can come to Australia, and I'll show you the sights."

"No, it's been no bother," Ciara assured her. "I just didn't want to bother anyone else."
 
Dark thought about this for a moment, an almost imperceptible shift in his eyes, "Maybe the second time." Then whatever shadows that had crept into his face dissipated and he rolled his shoulders back, "If I survive the flight to Australia, I would be glad to have you as my guide."

"It wouldn't bother me, although I can't speak for anyone else here. But I know she's bound to keep talking regardless of what you do. Right, sweet girl?" Daizi asked, and grinning when Ivy cooed at her and tried to grab her face. "We know that soon she's going to start getting shy around strangers, probably, anyway, but until then she just wants to talk to everybody."
 
Jack caught the tiny shift in Dark, but he said nothing to draw attention to it. He just nodded. "If you let me bring you to Australia, I'll pay for your flight, myself, just to make up for the discomfort. And as a bribe to make you more patient when I gab away at you for hours about some stupid rock or something."

Ciara smiled slightly at Ivy. "I cannot honestly imagine her being shy. Why would she become shy?"
 
"Those tickets cost to much to allow you to pay for the entire thing," Dark replied, holding up one hand, and would've then sat Ivy back upright, but she seemed comfortable and now Daizi was chatting with her, too, "but in any case, I could not make a trip like that for a few years, yet. We are not even sure when we will go back to visit Daizi's family."

"It's a developmental thing. She's still learning to figure out who is familiar and who is not, and when she starts to recognize that she does not know someone, it's scary." Daizi explained, bending to be slightly on Ivy's level, before losing her ability to resist and taking her entirely from her husband. He held her the entire time they were in the talent show, it was only right she have her back. "That's what I've read, anyway. And then, to a varying amount, she'll be much less content when just anyone picks her up."
 
"Then I'll have a few years to set aside the funds to treat one of my best friends to a vacation he so deeply deserves," Jack grinned. "But anything can happen in a few years. We'll just keep in touch and see where we are the, eh?"

"I see," Ciara said, not certain she understood but trusting Daizi's experience and research. "Well, I am certain you will be able to deal with that when it happens. She trusts you, and it is easier to trust other people when you have someone you trust guiding you."
 
"We will, I can agree to that." Dark said, seeming as affable and relaxed as he ever did, although he wondered with mild concern if he was supposed to view Jack as one of his best friends. He liked Jack, but he didn't feel particularly close to him. He wasn't even sure if he would speak with him, were their wives not friends. He would need to talk to Daizi about it later.

"Most of the people in her life see her pretty regularly. It won't be a problem as much as seperation anxiety will be, I think," Daizi said, kissing Ivy on her cheek. Unlike Dark, who had Ivy sitting in his lap, Daizi was holding her up, just barely letting her try supporting her weight on her feet. Ivy would rest them down, but hadn't quite figured out putting any weight on them yet, but she liked being close to her mother's face, so really all Ivy focused on was trying to grab Daizi's sunglasses off of her face. "And I'm worried about teething."
 
"So, how's the woodworking going?" Jack asked, moving the conversation to what he hoped would be an easier topic for Dark.

"Teething? Is that normally a problem?" Ciara asked, mystified.
 
"It is well," Dark answered, "I am building a wardrobe for Xander, to keep his clothing unsparkled. And I am making my daughter a high chair. Then I plan to be finished with large items, I enjoy making furniture less than small, curious things. I only craft furniture when it is worthwhile."

"It's uncomfortable for babies, even painful. Have you ever had your wisdom teeth come in? It's like that, but her entire sweet little mouth, and she doesn't understand what's happening." Daizi explained, rubbing her cheek against Ivy's head.
 
"Xander has sparkled clothing?" Jack chuckled, confused. "And I think that sounds downright worthwhile."

"Ah, and thus highly uncomfortable for the parents having to deal with that," Ciara said with a slight wince. "As it happens, my wisdom teeth did not give me any trouble, but I had friends who were quite jealous."
 
"Not intentionally." Dark replied.

"Dark's were miserable," Daizi said, with an empathetic but amused laugh, rubbing the back of Dark's neck, despite them being in two different conversations, "He had a little infection, and between the fever and the anesthesia, he was a little bit out of his mind. I felt terrible for laughing at the time. I don't have any to come in, I think they're probably off with my optic nerves."
 
"Oh, do those two share a closet?" Jack asked, indicating Alec and Xander. "That would make a lot of things make sense."

Ciara wasn't quite sure how to respond to that. "That is... unusual, though perhaps a blessing, of sorts," she said awkwardly. She glanced at the twins. Alec was watching Xander trying to balance two forks and a butter knife on the edge of his cup. "I hope they will be able to give you some help in that case."

Sally turned to Daizi. "Did I hear something about teething? Already?"
 
"Shared unequally, I would guess."

Daizi let out a small knowing sigh and let Ivy take off her sunglasses. She was curious, and it was bound to happen anyway, Daizi thought, and anyway it didn't bother her for her eyes to be seen, if she hadn't discovered fun ones, she might not wear them at all, "It's okay to talk about, you know. I joke about my disability all the time. Don't worry." Because she couldn't see Ciara glance at Alec and Xander, Daizi didn't totally understand what she meant, or what 'that case' was, but Sally interrupted, so she turned her attention that way, while putting her sunglasses on Ivy's face (and blowing her little mind in the process, since the lenses made the whole world blue), "Not yet, I don't think. But probably in the next few months! A lot of books and websites say between four and seven months she'll get her first tooth. She's five months, adjusted, on Monday."
 
"Do you think they'll be wanting their own rooms at this age?" Jack asked curiously. Sharing a room between teen boys was something that blew his mind. What about all the roughhousing? The need for space and anonymity? He didn't think it was a terrible thing, just strange to him.

"Oh, my, so soon!" Sally gasped. "Poor thing. Both you and her." She continued talking to Daizi about baby-related things, curious about Daizi's ideas for the future. The world looked a little different now than it had when Peter was an infant, and she was curious about the different choices availible. Plus, Peter hadn't been born in the States.

Ciara sat back and let them talk, turning her attention to the twins curiously.
 
"I am not sure. We have the space if they would prefer to have separate rooms, but they are close. I do not think it has occurred to them they do not need to share a space." Dark replied simply, taking a sip of his drink.

Daizi did deeply love getting to talk about Ivy, and she had a lot to say, especially since now Ivy was six months old. "I still can't believe we've gotten to spend half a year with her already," she sighed, lifting her daughter up and over her head to make her laugh, purely to hear the sound, "I feel like it wasn't that long ago we were in that horrible room with all the horrible machines and horrible smells."
 
"Must be a twin thing. If I had to share a room and a closet with either of my brothers at sixteen, I think my parents would have been down a child," Jack admitted. "We get along much better now that we're adults."

"I truly cannot even fathom the horror and the trauma," Sally said gently. She touched Daizi's hand lightly. "I am so glad you've been blessed with little Ivy, but I hope you won't take offense that I pray it'll never happen again."

Ciara was watching the twins, and Alec, of course, engaged her in conversation. Xander listened, but left them to their own devices. "... And then after that, we all went on a ride, and it was fantastic! Mama didn't even mind the smell too much."

"So, you do call her Mama?" Ciara asked softly.

Alec froze. "Um. Yes?" He didn't look at her directly, affraid of her reaction.

"Good. Do you have any plans for adoption?" she asked directly.

Good? She said good? Alec hesitated, not sure how to respond.
 
"I went to boarding school, I shared a dorm with my friend Cooger." Dark said, believing it was enough of a response. It indicated he did share a bedroom at sixteen, that was certain enough.

"It was traumatizing," Daizi said in a soft, slow voice, feeling how it felt in her mouth, like she had never said the words outloud before, and maybe hadn't even called it that in her private thoughts. It was traumatizing. But at that moment, they were in a restaurant, and surrounded by friends, and they were celebrating their children. It wasn't the place to even start unpacking anything. So she swallowed hard, took a breath, and put on a brave face, "I feel like I don't get enough credit for how long I fought to get her here," she forced herself to laugh, "and don't worry. Neither of us have any intention on starting down that road again, we've... discussed options to be certain of it. Anyway," She kissed Ivy, and took her sunglasses back before they got broken, "Dark and I couldn't make a more perfect baby if she tried."
 
"Yeah? I went to boarding school, too, but the room we shared was pretty big. It was all stuck-up rich kids. As opposed to a scruffy rich kid that grew up spending his summers at his grandad's ranch and knew what work meant," Jack chuckled. "I still got into my share of trouble."

Sally gave Daizi a sympathetic smile even if she couldn't see it. "I'm sorry I wasn't there for you more during that time. If you need to talk... if you need a cup of tea... please, call me. Or text." She squeezed Daizi's arm and sat back. "As for perfect babies, I think the only more perfect one I've ever seen was my own!" She laughed, teasing Daizi gently.

~~

"Alec doesn't want to go through with it, and we thought you'd hate the idea," Xander said bluntly.

Ciara frowned, setting down her cup. "Why in the world would you think I would hate the idea?"

"Because we'd be turning our backs on our family," Alec said meekly.

"Good gracious, child. I would say your family turned their backs on you long ago. No one could have a leg to stand on if they wished to deny you joining a new family," Ciara said stoutly. "That includes myself. Besides, I think you have seen by now that the true spirit of 'family' transcends any boundaries we would like to place on it. Look at your foster parents, their child, how they are with you, your so-called 'uncle,' and how they accepted me. If you wish to be adopted, if they wish to adopt you, I would certainly not stand in your way."

Alec stared at her owlishly. "But... what about... if other family members want to find us? And our Mum?"

"Tara would want you to be happy, whatever your choice," Ciara said stoutly. "As for finding you, if there is a will, there is a way. It is harder to hide than most people would be comfortable with. And the name? You can keep it, if you like, even with an adoption, but if your family wishes to find you, they will find a way."

"Huh," Alec said thoughtfully, playing with his fork.

"Good," Ciara said, glad that was settled.
 
With a little nod, Dark thought of all the things he might have replied with, were he a less restrained man. By then, he had spent most of his life around the wealthy, and knew all it would take was one divorce or one edit to an Egyptian will to be out of it, again, and he had heard many different ways those born into wealth attempted to normalize themselves. Although he had no way of knowing if it was something they did for him or something they did for themselves, but regardless, he never knew what they expected him to say to it. "That must have been somewhat isolating," was what he landed on, "and I have never known someone scruffy who did not find trouble."

While Dark nodded, Daizi shook her head, but put her hand over Sally's, "My family was there: all my favourite aunts, and my father. The little room was full of support." Then she laughed lightly at Sally's comment about Peter, "I always say most perfect girl, if we're talking about all babies ever in the world, because I never knew my sons as babies. But for all babies made up of me and Dark, she's the greatest." Underneath the table, at around the same time, Dark and Daizi shifted their leg to press her right and his left knee against each other, as a replacement for holding hands.
 
"A good point," Jack agreed. "I guess I'm just lucky that Peter takes after his mother instead of me. Otherwise, I'd be forced to face what I was like for my own parents!" He laughed and shook his head. "Anyway, what kind of design are you going with for the highchair?"

"She is truly one of the sweetest I've ever met, and that is no exaggeration." Sally leaned closer and whispered, "Peter was a rather grumpy baby who struggled with colic."
 
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