Chapter 21

He endured like a champ.

Snek never thought his son would last the summer. In fact, he half expected Drax to beg and plea with him to find a way to turn him back, yet the kid withstood! He wasn't going to admit it out loud, but, even he enjoyed the company. They did many things together, yet there was on event that really stuck out in his mind.

They were just on patrol outside of Drax's school. He heard some kid playing and a basketball rolled towards him. At first, he was hesitant to throw it back. "You still don't want them to know, do you?" Snek asked of him.

Drax however looked between him and the ball, he took a deep breath before reaching down and slithering up to the court, he kept out of sight by hiding behind the corner of the school as he threw the ball back. However, one of the kids caught a glimpse of his shadow. "Drax?" she called.

Snek froze as his son did as well. "Drax, come play with us!"

"I… I can't right now… I'm… busy."

Suddenly, one of the kids began to approach, she nearly turned the corner until she noticed Snek in the distance. Her eyes widened as she froze at the sight of him. "M CLASS DRAGON! GUYS COME SEE, SNEK IS HERE!" she called with great excitement.

The kids ran out, completely bypassing Drax and running towards him. "Snek, sir! Thank you for your help at the end of the school year! You took down that monster fast!"

He smiled and nodded to the kids. "My pleasure, I try to help where I can."

"Did you see Drax? He's a schoolmate of ours, he dressed like you at the end of the year for hero day, and he distracted the monster until you got there… Wait, I heard hi…" she turned. Snek was even stunned as his son approached his schoolmates.

There was a collective gasp among them. "Drax?"

He nodded his head. "Hi…"

"Whoa… now you really look like Snek!... wait… how can you…"

"Well, you need to keep this a secret. Can you do that?" he asked.

There was a strange look among the children but they nodded. Drax then turned to Snek and said. "These are the kids I usually sit with at lunch. They all lost a parent from a monster attack. When they learned that I lost mom, they sat with me. Guys… this is my father."

They looked between Snek and Drax, one of the girls smirked. "I knew it," she announced.

Drax was taken aback. "What do you mean?"

"You looked too much like him when you dressed up at the end of the school year. Spitting image to say the least, not to mention, with the way Josh spoke about you, standing your ground during a monster attack. You HAD to be the son of a hero!"

Still, Drax was confused. "If you knew, why didn't you say anything?"

"We know how the others acted around you. Josh wouldn't stop picking on you until your dad made an appearance. He would then brag that he could make an M class dragon appear at any given moment, which means, picking on you even more and worst than before. That's not fair to say the least."

"Still… how did you become like him?!"

Drax smiled as he explained everything. There were six kids in total. Snek never caught any of their names, but they were all ears as Drax told his story. "So you see, that's why I go up the mountain to Bang's dojo… I live with my dad and he lives with Garou."

Their eyes widened. "Whoa… you live in the same house as the human monster?!"

"Yep!" he said proudly. "But not all the time, since I was adopted… my dad couldn't since there's a weird law to prevent people who have been turned into monsters from reclaiming their children. But my adoptive father is very kind and lets me live with my dad more than him knowing the full situation."

"Cool!... did you still want to play with us?"

Drax was about to accept until his stomach rumbled. It startled his schoolmates as well as his whole body shook. "Thanks, but I got to eat first… so… you promise not to tell?"

The kids vowed not to say a word about it. Drax appeared a little relieved, but was still fearful that somehow, word will slip out. As they went on their way, Snek smiled to him. "They seem like good kids."

"Yeah…"

"You should have them over to the house."

"NO!" he protested. "Dad… then people will follow them, then word will get out. I won't hear the end of it from the others…"

"Okay, okay, but we should do something special, if they are kind enough to let you sit with them and knowing the truth but not saying anything…"

"I know. I'll think of something."

They hunted together, took down monsters and helped out however they could in the community. Snek couldn't help but be proud of his son. When people spoke of him, his chest swelled out with pride. Drax was a great little hero in his mind.