Chapter 6

"WAAAHHH!"

"Shhhhh, it's okay Aoki, it's okay…"

His hands were full.

Titan has been working hard tending to his brothers and Suiryu and Alley's newborns. He even took the liberty of naming them, yet somehow he got a strange look the moment he mentioned Okami's name.

"Isn't that a girl's name?" he remembered one hero asking of him.

He shrugged his shoulders. "I don't think so. I know it means wolf… I'm sure Alley would have liked it…" he said offhandedly.

Despite the odd stares he gets, he liked the name, and made it stick. Even his siblings call him Okami. But for now, he won't dwell on it.

He kept thinking of the day he returned to the Association with the twins in hand, yet then he saw the stranger who looked like his father and Suiryu, he too was holding two infants in his arms. When their eyes met, there was a desperate look in the man's face. "You, you are a maternal type aren't you?"

"Huh?" asked Yuuma. "He's takes care of our younger brothers most of the time, but that wouldn't make him maternal!"

"It means he is good at raising kids, I would say he is." Said Yuki. But he paused. "Why are you asking this?"

He presented the two newborns to him. "These two… need to be taken care of. Can you do that for me?"

Titan looked over the twin boys, when he picked up their scent. He froze. "Alley and Suiryu's children!" he said with amazement. "You… you managed to save them?"

The stranger nodded. "I need you to look after them for me please, can you?" he was asked again.

Titan nodded, he didn't hesitate to say the least.

Since then, he has tended to them.

Remaining in his serpent form, it was easier to take care of four babies at once. He could coil himself in such a way that he could become a bed or table at a moment's notice. But there was something troubling him.

Shiryu and Okami's eyes have yet to open.

He could feel something was wrong with them, but doesn't know what. He has kept them fed with formula and water, they do get changed, but their eyes refuse to open. "Is everything okay? Did you two go through so much that you can't wake?" he asked them gently.

But they merely slept, nothing more.

Titan sighed aloud as he hoped he was doing everything right. He ever realized the burden that is placed on one when they become a parent. His mother and father were truly remarkable. He merely helped out as he looked back one everything he did. It was a lot more work than he realized.

He has had help though.

Angie as been coming to him and asking to assist in raising the four, he accepted without hesitation and found that she has been remarkable with children. They were spending more and more time together. Angie was beaming when she held one of the children. Her cheeks aglow as she looked down at them lovingly before her eyes turned to Titan.

Today, she came to help once more.

Armed with bottles and a portable warmer Alley had made before, she set them aside and at the ready for when they were needed. "How are they?" she asked.

"Asleep for now, but I don't know… Okami and Shiryu have yet to open their eyes, I think something is wrong, but I don't know how to fix it. I asked Genus, but he looked them over and couldn't understand it either. I am worried, I wonder if they are aware of what became of their parents…"

Angie sighed aloud. "We can only do what we can, right?" she said gently. "Just keep going,"

He agreed.

His eyes drifted to his brothers. He wanted to tell someone about what happened that day, when he got them back from the hands of 106's assistance. He managed to catch up rather quickly, they were going to draw blood from his brothers when the needle somehow broke!

He didn't think much of it at first, he was too full of rage. Only now, has the thought come to his mind, the incident standing out the most and yet, he still wonders how it happened.

"Titan?"

"Oh, sorry,"

"Are you okay? You appeared confused and worried!"

He smiled warmly to Angie. "I'm okay, just thinking… we've been through a lot…"

She nodded her head as she nestled into him. "I know… I miss Papa…" she said and began to weep. "I can't even look at Pig God!" her voice spiked with venom towards the large hero.

Of course he understood, but Pig God was also a friend of her father's. He is still a friend to Yuki. "I don't think he wanted to do that either," Titan said gently. "But he must have known, they would have done terrible things to your father even in death that wouldn't sit well with you. Not to mention, that bullet they used on my family… had they used it on your father, there would have been a chance that Pythan would have been shot too. Or by accident trying to save him…"

She sniffled and nodded. "I know…" she whispered meekly. "But still, he ate papa!"

There was no consoling her.

He didn't speak any more of it, but he tried to sooth Angie as best he could. "I know what it's like to lose your parent…" he whispered. "We have all suffered through this, but we will be stronger for it."

She fell silent to him, Titan did a quick check of the infants before Angie said. "Would you be my mate?"

He froze to the notion, slowly, turning himself around again, he stared down as Angie looked into his eyes lovingly. "Titan… would you?" she asked again.

He was silent to the question at first, unable to think for the moment. "Mate… you would want someone like me… as a mate?" he asked gently. "You have seen what I turn into…"

"But it's not who you are"

"It is though," he whispered. "What I become is probably what I should look like, had it not been for mom's genetics…"

"But…" her hand reached over as she gently took it. "I could care less if that was. You are so strong, kind and gentle, when you fight, you do so to protect those around you…"

"Angie… would your father have approved of me?"

She nodded instantly. "Papa, liked you and the others… when you were small he enjoyed teaching and raising you to become stronger young serpents. I think he would be thrilled to know I found someone I can trust and help protect, and they can also protect me…"

He smiled. In his months of training, and having Angie watch, he as felt more and more of a need to display how strong he was to her. He felt compelled to continue in his training just to appear powerful in her eyes. His heart flutters when he sees her now, and he swears, her scent is changing.

"Angie…" he was about to say

Then Shiryu wailed.

He stopped his thought and tended to him quickly. "Okay what's wrong?" he asked gently.

Shiryu was dry, no diaper change, he had water twenty minutes ago, so he is probably hungry by now.

And like clock work Okami began to cry too.

It was lunchtime for the four. Aoki and Juro were quick to wake up, but didn't cry for their bottle. They appeared to know it was time to eat. "Angie, can you get some baby food ready please for my brothers?" he asked.

She smiled and nodded.

Titan carried around a massive bag full of baby things, baby food being one of them. She fed the twins as Titan got Alley's brood.

As they settled the newborns, he kept looking over to her and saw how good she was with his brothers. 'She would make a wonderful mate… Wait, dad said I wasn't ready. Maybe I am but I don't know anymore…' he thought.

With the babies tended to, Titan looked back to Angie. She helped lull them to sleep once more before placing them back on the coil.

"Angie…" he said. "If you wish to have me as a mate… I would be honored… but I would like to ask your siblings for permission in place of your father."

She was surprised, but nodded full heartedly.

"They like you too, you know," she said. "I'll find them and see if perhaps they will have a sit down meeting with us."

"If they are busy, let's not rush this. Besides. I won't be going anywhere." He said with a smile.

She gave him a quick kiss on his cheek before walking off. But Angie suddenly had a spring in her step…