In the back of his mind, he registered the faint patter of rain against the roof. He could hear the wind howling outside, and in the blink of an eye he could calculate its speed and direction. He could hear the rustling of a bird in the woods behind the house, settling into its nest to wait out the storm. If he focused, he could even hear all the way to Kokaua Town, listening in on the conversations between his cousins. If he tried right then, he would have heard Sparky fretting about the leaks in the lighthouse roof, Richter engaging in a discussion with Yaarp over the increased military presence on Kauai, and Slushy's exasperated efforts to keep himself dry, lest the rain build up an irritating ice-shell around his body.
Stitch could have heard all of this if he wanted to. And yet, he cared not. Sitting in the Pelekai living room, away from the prying eyes of tourists and natives, the blue-furred koala-like creature had his extra limbs extended, his antennae exposed, and his spines visible. Among ohana, he need not hide his foreign anatomy. And especially now, he cared very little if his alien physique disturbed any observers, for his attention was completely occupied by something else.
He sat at the head of the couch, gently stroking a soft pink-furred paw, whispering words of encouragement in his native tongue. Lying on the couch was a similar koala-like experiment. She was a delicate shade of pink, which many-a-foe interpreted as meaning she was weak, much to their disadvantage once she tore them limb from limb. Angel was nearly as strong as Stitch, and could use a telepathic siren song to enslave almost any creature to her will, if she wanted to. She was equally indestructible, fireproof, bulletproof, and deathly fearful of large expanses of water. And for the first time in her life, she was experiencing pain.
Also present in the living room was a concerned Lilo, trying her best not to get overexcited. The 11-year-old Hawaiian girl was dressed in her favorite red muumuu, and she held a camera in her quivering hands, ready to photograph any developments at a moment's notice. She stood on the other side of the room, pressed between the television set and the bookcase which sat next to the front door. Her feet shuffled nervously as she peered at her best friend fretting over his mate.
On the other end of the couch was Dr. Jumba Jookiba, behaving in an atypically calm and collected manner. In his hand he held a strange, disc-shaped device with four metal tentacles protruding from its rim. He held the device over Angel's abdomen, who was whimpering fearfully as she watched the metal tendrils scan her torso with bluish lights. Beads of sweat were running down his head, stinging his four eyes, and despite his calm demeanor, he was obviously very concerned.
Stitch turned his head and stared at his creator, worry and hope in his solid black eyes. Finally, after reading the strange numbers displaying across the device's surface, he breathed with obvious relief and pulled away from Angel's swollen belly.
"624 is being fine," he spoke softly. "Is normal level of labor pain."
Both Stitch and Lilo simultaneously released similar loud sighs. Angel looked at Stitch with tired eyes, and a small smile crossed her face, before being replaced by a grimace. Lilo stepped up to the couch, snapping a photograph of Stitch standing over his mate protectively as a grin started to form on his face.
"Are… Are they… healthy?" He nervously asked.
"Indeed they are, 626," Jumba replied. "Three perfectly healthy, perfectly destructive experiments!" He started to cackle a little at the thought of the chaotic progeny of his creations. How much wanton destruction could come from an increasingly larger experiment population? The mere thought brought back memories of his former career as a self-proclaimed "Evil Genius."
"They are being excellent specimens for-"
"Naga."
Jumba looked at Stitch curiously, and a little irritated that he interrupted his anarchic fantasy. Lilo had a similarly puzzled expression.
"What's wrong Stitch?" Lilo asked cautiously. His face had become stone-cold serious, the former giddy grin completely erased.
"Yes, what is meaning of rude interruption?" Jumba huffed out.
Stitch stared his creator in his four eyes, a look of defiance crossing his face. He still struggled with the English language, his mind having been hardwired for Tantalog. As a result, forming sentences was difficult for him, unlike his cousin Reuben who was programmed with superior language-processing abilities. But occasionally, situations necessitated him to speak, and he haphazardly forced out sentences to get his meaning across completely. And in this moment, Stitch demanded to be heard.
"Jumba made cousins. But…" Stitch leaned over and caressed Angel's swollen womb with his paw, "youga did not… make them. Meega did. And Angel."
Stitch's voice took on a tone of determined pride as he continued to his dumfounded audience. "We… naga… your 'experiments' anymore… We are new species. And we… naga be called 'experiments' again. We naga belong to youga."
Stitch turned away from Jumba, and gently kissed Angel's forehead as her body clenched in pain again.
Jumba was visibly offended by Stitch's statement, his brow furrowing in indignation. Thoroughly frustrated, Jumba yelled, "What should we be calling you then? I made you! You cannot be changing your legacy! You are MY creations!"
Stitch coldly looked at his maker, and simply stated "Naga anymore." Jumba glared at Stitch for a moment, trying to think of something properly insulting, before huffing loudly in defeat and stomping into the hallway. He could be heard muttering angrily as he banged up the stairs into his the room he shared with Pleakley, both Angel and Stitch cringing when he slammed the door. Then Stitch felt a gentle hand on his shoulder, and he turned to look at his best friend. Lilo was gazing at him with a supportive, comforting smile.
Nervously she spoke softly, "You know, Jumba does bring up a valid point. If we can't call you 'experiments,' what should we call you?"
Stitch's eyes partially closed in concentration for a moment, his back spines twitching involuntarily. Finally he stated "Meega not sure. Want name that means something about cousins."
Lilo tried to understand what he meant. "You want a new name for the cousins?"
"Ih! A special name!"
Suddenly Stitch froze, obviously sensing something Lilo did not, and then quickly leaped to Angel's side, covering her large ears as a loud "BOOM!" shook the house. Lilo screamed, and Stitch cringed in pain as his sensitive ears ringed with the powerful thunder. The electricity suddenly went out, and faint rain-filtered light spilled over the wood floor from the window.
A profound silence filled the house, disturbed only by the dulled sounds of the weather raging outside. The silence was broken moments later by Lilo whispering softly, "I hope Nani is okay…"
Lilo's tone carried with it a morbid fear, and Stitch understood exactly why thunder made her nervous. It was the same reason why she used to feed peanut butter sandwiches to a fish she believed controlled the weather, and the same reason why she had been raised by her sister. Stitch momentarily left Angel's side, and carefully approached Lilo, who was trembling in fear in the middle of the floor. Stitch carefully wrapped his four arms around her, embracing her in a gentle hug. He whispered into her ear, "Meega can hear Nani from here. She's okitaka."
Pulling away from Stitch's comforting arms, she looked into his black eyes fondly, enjoying the gentle kindness she saw in their depths. Suddenly her face broke into a huge smile, and she jumped up in excitement, shouting to Stitch "I got it!" to which he cringed in pain from his still-sensitive ears.
"Oh… Sorry." She sheepishly apologized. Stitch glared at her with mock-anger, before cracking a toothy grin and saying "Is okitaka! What do you got?"
Lilo excitedly started explaining to Stitch. "Well, the cousins are all strong, brave, and undoubtedly loyal. You heard the thunder coming, and instead of covering your own ears, you covered Angel's. And just now, you helped me without hesitation."
"Okay." Stitch said calmly, wishing Lilo would get to the point.
"Well, those are all warrior traits!"
"Warrior? So, we are warriors?"
"You are 'like' warriors. As a race, you're all fearless, powerful, and faithful, and you deserve a name that shows it. Maybe… maybe the 'Lahui Koa!' The warrior people!"
Lilo expectantly looked at Stitch, waiting for his response. He thought about it for a few seconds, and then turned to look at Angel. She had fallen into an anxious sleep, softly murmuring unintelligible words. Stitch smiled warmly, and gently caressed the soft pink fur on her face, tracing the lighter pink fur around her eyes, and then gently stroking one of her long antennae.
"Lahui Koa," he said softly.
"We are Lahui Koa."