Chapter 6

A/N: This is it guys. Thank you so much for all the support you gave me!

Disclaimer: I don't own Angry Birds.

Enjoy the final chapter of Not Alone!

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Red sighed as he and his two friends made their way back to the village. The hatchling had long since fallen asleep in his arms. No one had said anything during their trek and continued walking in silence until they reached Red's house.

"Thanks for helping me back there guys. I appreciate it." Red said absently.

"Ah it was nothing," Bomb replied.

"Well, I guess we should get going now. Thanks for letting us stay over, Red," Chuck stated as he rubbed his neck awkwardly.

"It's fine. See ya guys tomorrow," With that, Red silently made his way inside. Chuck and Bomb exchanged worried looks. Something was clearly bothering their friend, but what?

"Do you think Red is gonna be okay, Chuck? He seemed….different," Bomb muttered.

"I don't know," the yellow bird replied.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Red meanwhile made his way through his house and carefully placed Cody on the nest. He then laid down next to him and stared at the celling with an empty look in his eyes, deep in thought.

Did I really make the right choice back there? Should the hatchling stay with me after what happened tonight? Those thoughts refused to leave Red, no matter how hard he tried. He rolled over and stared at the small bird next to him, wondering if the hatchling would be happier with someone else. He couldn't help feeling guilty for making the kid so sad.

Red sighed again and closed his eyes, trying to at least get some sleep.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

A few hours later, there was someone knocking on his door. Opening his eyes, Red yawned as he went over to open it and was surprised when he saw it was Matilda.

"Hello, Red." She smiled as he let her in.

"Matilda, what are you doing here?" he asked in confusion. They didn't have class today so why would his teacher come here?

"Chuck told me what happened last night. Are you alright?" she asked in concern.

"What? Of course, I'm fine," he answered, but the hen gave him an unconvinced look. Red sighed in defeat, knowing there was no point in arguing. He then looked over at the sleeping hatchling, dejectedly.

"Am I really fit for this, Matilda? I mean, last night everything went wrong and it's all my fault. The kid wouldn't have gone out if I hadn't forgotten to lock the door. He could have gotten hurt or worse and none of us would have known." Red said, looking down to his feet.

"Maybe he'd be better off with someone else, someone who would take care of him better than me. I could just stop by to visit him every now and then." He finished. It would be for the best, no matter how much Red would hate to see the kid leave him.

Matilda placed a hand on his shoulder. "Well, you know what I think, Red? I think Cody is better off with you than anybody else on the island."

Red gave her a hard look. "And why is that?"

"Because you understand him more than any of us," she stated. "You know how he feels and what he might go through. You really care about him and Cody knows that. He could have gone with anybody if he wanted to, but instead he chose you."

Red blinked, having never thought of that before. "But what if I can't do it? What if I fail?"

His teacher sighed patiently. "Look Red, taking care of an orphan is never easy, I'm not gonna lie. But I know you're gonna do a great job at it even if you don't think so. I've seen what you did for him, how happy you made him. You're the only family he has left, Red."

Red considered what she said for a moment and finally nodded. "You're right, thanks Matilda." He said with a smile.

Matilda smiled back. "Well, I should be heading home now. I'll see you later, Red." She said and soon left.

Red sighed and made his way to the kitchen. He opened the fridge and took out a cartoon of orange juice. Just as he about to drink from it he noticed Cody's drawing on the fridge door. He had left it there so they could always look at it.

Just seeing it there gave Red the resolve he needed. He looked back at the sleeping hatchling and smiled. He will make up for his mistake, no matter how long it takes.

The next few weeks were hard for them. The hatchling was still upset over losing his parents and spoke even less than before.

But Red refused to give up. He'd comfort him whenever he looked sad and try to cheer him up. He red him stories every night and tucked him in.

He took him to play with the Blues, immediately becoming friends with them and promising them to come back again. He also introduced him to his childhood hero, Mighty Eagle. All of his friends helped too and visited them whenever they could.

It wasn't long until the kid began smile and laugh again.

Many months later while he was tucking the hatchling for the night, something unexpected happened. It could have been his imagination though, but just for a moment he thought the kid had called him dad.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Ten years later…..

At the back yard of a small house, two birds were working together on a huge piece of woods.

"Is it done?" a much older Cody asked as he whipped the sweat from his forehead.

"Yeah, I believe it is," Red answered with a smile as he fixed his glasses. He got accustomed to wearing them ever since his eyes sight got weaker three years ago.

The two stood there, admiring their work. It was a great sculpture of all the birds together with their eagle guardian standing above them with his wings spread wide.

Just then, there was a gust of wind from behind and they looked over to see Chuck coming their way. "Hey guys, is it ready. The judge wouldn't stop bugging me about it since the ceremony is four days away,"

"Yup, it's done. You're here just in time too." Red stated proudly.

Chuck walked over to the sculpture and inspected it. "I think it needs a little more carving. Probably won't last a week."

"Chuck, if we weren't friends I would punch right now," Red growled angrily while the kid giggled.

"Nah, that won't happen Uncle Chuck. Dad is the best at what he does!" Cody exclaimed confidently.

Red gave Chuck a smug look who rolled his eyes at this. "Whatever, I should go get Terrance to pick this up. See ya!" he smirked before dashing away.

Red glanced down at the kid. "Thanks for helping me, son," he said as he ruffled his head playfully.

"Dad…." Cody whined.

"You can act like you hate it all you want, but I can see you smiling," Red grinned, watching his adopted son try to hold back a smile and failing.

Red couldn't believe this was the same small and lonely hatchling he found in his house a decade ago. The kid was half his size now!

He didn't know why, but Red found himself reaching for the kid and pulling him into hug, earning a surprised yelp from him.

"I love you son," he said softly. Cody blinked in confusion at this, but then smiled and hugged back.

"Love you too, Dad."

Red smiled in contentment, not caring how long they stood like that.

You won't be alone, never again….

The End

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

A/N: And done! Thanks for all your kind reviews and support. I really appreciate it. When I first started this fic I wasn't expecting this amount of feedback and I'm glad that you all enjoyed it!

Now I would like to thank everyone who reviewed for Not Alone.

LagrimasSolitarias

Polydactyly Zodiac

Alex The Owl

CB1610

I.M. Rally

Sammy Heroes

vdademj93

Black Ninja

Platypusgirl27

thewriterstory

Kathita the Hedgehog

Ponystoriesandothers

And all guests!

Until next time! :D