"Hello, this is the Hastings' residence. Marjan speaking." She sounded British.
"Mrs. Hastings? This is Altair Ibn-La'Ahad, Desmond Miles' caretaker."
"Yes? What do you need?" she sounded confused.
"My younger brother and your son are good friends at the day care, and I was wondering if you were free sometime soon, perhaps we could take them to the park? I realize you don't know me, since I pick my brother up after school."
"No, no, Shaun's talked about Desmond before. How is it that you have different last names?"
He sighed. "My mother's been married several times."
"Several?" she said it as if it were a scandal.
"Ah, yes, I have two younger brothers I take care of as she travels with her current husband. He works for Abstergo Industries."
"My, my, my, and you're taking care of your two younger brothers? That's terrible! If you ever need a place to drop Desmond off at, I would be more than happy to take him off your hands for a while. Shaun was going on and on about the fact he had a tiger named after him from your Desmond."
He smiled, kissing his brother's forehead, and Desmond smiled.
"We should be free after church tomorrow. Of course, I'll have to run him home first to change him out of his clothes."
"Naturally. What time—"
"How about two o'clock at Jackson Park?"
"Sounds wonderful. I can't wait to meet you."
"You sound like a wonderful young man. I'll see you tomorrow then. Shaun!"
"Shaun!" Desmond shrieked "Shaun!"
He could hear in the background Mrs. Hastings wrestling with her child. "I'm so sorry, Altair. Shaun came—"
"Shaun!" Desmond shrieked again, and Altair winced. That boy had volume when he wanted to.
"Does he want to say hello?"
Altair raised an eyebrow. "Would you like to say hello to Shaun?"
"Shaun!" Desmond yelped, making a grabby hand at the phone.
Altair chuckled. "He would love to."
"Shaun?" Desmond spoke cautiously, almost as if he expected him to jump out of the receiver.
Altair sat down, listening to him babble in mostly incoherency, but he assumed Shaun could understand, and he supposed that was okay. Ezio and Kadar came walking in.
"They're done?"
"They should be cool by now."
"Awesome!"
"Thanks, Altair!"
He nodded as Desmond pushed the phone back at him.
"My, they certainly are chatty, aren't they?"
Altair exhaled loudly, and Mrs. Hastings laughed. "Well then, I'll see you tomorrow."
"Thanks, Mrs. Hastings."
"It's no problem, dear. Good bye."
"Good bye." He hung up the phone and looked at an expectant Desmond. "We'll go to the park tomorrow at two, okay?"
"Okay!" Desmond shrieked, and Altair jerked back slightly from the high pitch as the boy nestled into his arms.
"What is going on in here?"
He looked to the entrance of the kitchen to find Malik standing there, his arms crossed and yawning. He shrugged.
"I'm taking Desmond to the park tomorrow."
"I suppose we're all going?"
"Unless you want to stay here and watch the boys."
Malik scowled. "All right, we're all going."
He nodded and walked passed him to the couch, where he sat down and cuddled Desmond. Malik plopped beside him and leaned in, still waking up. The little boy nestled into him and his friend, and they sat there, cuddling, for a long time, watching as Ezio and Kadar dragged out the DDR mats and began stomping away, until the sun went down and the kids began complaining about being hungry. Desmond clung to him as he baked some chicken and prepared fries for him.
As they sat down for dinner, he thought maybe it wasn't as bad as he thought. He watched as Desmond played with the chicken he had pulled for him, and Ezio was playfully trash-talking Kadar, who was spewing dirt right back at him. They got into the DDR game. Ezio was more than excited to go to the park—because he knew the ice cream truck would be there, and so would Cristina. Altair suggested he push Cristina on the swing, and Ezio said that he would—while keeping Vieri away. Altair just knew the two of them would grow up and be childhood sweethearts.
As Malik washed the dishes, he packed his messenger bag with anything they might need. He pushed in bandaids and Neosporin, money for the ice cream truck. He tucked in his free-reading book and Malik's, and an extra magazine or two. His wallet and a blanket were the last things to go in. He knew Desmond would end up napping in the park, so he pushed a blanket for him to sleep on in the bag. Setting it on the door handle, he jogged downstairs to find Desmond playing with his crayons. There was a sippy-cup full of juice in front of him as he worked hard on his picture. Ezio and Kadar were back to battling in a shoot'em up game.
He sat by Desmond. "What are you drawing?"
"A hoppy toad bike!" he chirped, and Altair peeked over his shoulder at the bright scribbles.
He smiled as Malik came over and sat behind him on the couch. He leaned back, between his legs, and sighed.
"At least the nap cured everything."
"Yes," he murmured. "Naps do have a way of doing that."
"What's Desmond drawing?"
He could feel Malik's fingers gently scratching his head, and his eyes fluttered closed as he tilted his head back. "A frog on a bicycle."
He heard Malik chuckle softly. "He's got quite an imagination."
"I hope it serves him well in the future."
They were silent for a few minutes, the stomping of their brothers and Desmond's quiet murmurs about what color he needed the only thing he could hear. He was relaxing into Malik's head massage, and, briefly, he wondered what Robert would do if he pulled Malik into a kiss right in front of him.
"I can hear you thinking," Malik murmured.
"About Robert."
"What this time?"
"What he would do if I kissed you in front of him."
He could feel the wicked smirk twisting onto his friend's lips. "Perhaps we should try it. Give him something to talk about."
Altair scoffed. "That would be fun. Especially the next time I have to bring Desmond in."
"I'll store that idea away for later. Hopefully, we won't see him tomorrow."
"Don't count your chickens before they hatch." He rubbed Malik's calf gently. "When I take Desmond up to put him to bed, will you put some g-u-m-m-i-e-s in the bag for me?"
"Are there some in the cupboard?"
"Yes."
"You're a softie, Altair."
"I know."
"Grow a pair."
"You're the one who needs them. I all ready spanked Desmond in the grocery market today for not listening."
Malik nodded. "Tell me what went on."
"He wanted gummies, and when I put them back for the third time and he slapped me, I spanked him. Some guy called me out, and I told him off."
"You probably could've taken him."
"I could've. No 'probably' necessary."
"You're an arrogant ass."
"Yet still you stay around here. Goddamn masochist."
"I really should leave you. Right now."
"You really should."
There was silence for a few second before two scoffs right in time with each other. They were silent once more, until he heard Desmond yawn, and he rose, scooping the boy up after prying the crayon from his hand. Desmond had Shaun in one hand, dangling dangerously, and was half-asleep against his shoulder. He walked into the toddler's dinosaur themed room, stepping over the plastic dinosaurs. He put him in a diaper, tucked him in, and sung him a lullaby before leaving his room. He met Malik halfway down the stairs.
"I'm off to bed. The gummies are in the bag."
"Still tired from chasing Kadar?"
"That damn boy can run if he wants too."
Altair nodded, patting his shoulder once before continuing down the stairs. He waited until ten, and like clockwork, Ezio and Kadar went up to bed. He was up another hour after that, tidying up Desmond's mess and the entertainment system before he walked to his room and fell asleep next to Malik. The next morning, he woke up tangled under the sheets with Malik. He could see the clock reading sometime passed noon, and he grunted, shifting against his friend. Malik mumbled something, sounding angry as he rolled over and burrowed in closer to Altair.
"Mal'k, gotta get up."
He grunted at the angry mumble.
"Desmond to the park today."
He let the man roll away as he sat up, rubbing his eyes. When he checked the clock, he realized it was almost one, and he cursed, jumping out of the bed and scrambling to get dressed. He brushed his teeth and ran downstairs, not caring if his hair was wild. He found Ezio and Kadar in the kitchen, with Desmond in his highchair, crying. He scooped the boy up and bumped the ten-year-olds from the kitchen, trying valiantly to save the oatmeal. It worked, with a handful of brown sugar and some fruit, but he eventually found himself sitting at the table, rubbing his eyes as Desmond munched merrily on the oatmeal, and Ezio and Kadar picked at the fruit.
"Sorry, Altair," Ezio murmured.
"It's not your fault. You were just letting me sleep in. Thank you for trying."
"Are you sure?"
Altair looked at his brother, giving him a soft look. "I'm positive. You did a good job this morning."
Ezio beamed, and Kadar looked happy as well. They finished off their food and went to leave.
"Remember, we leave in less than an hour for the park."
"Yup!"
He watched Desmond eat, fixing himself a light lunch and several snacks for the park. Malik came down thirty minutes later, and he handed him the sandwich he had made for him. Malik ate it in a trance, still waking up, and it wasn't until he had slipped him a cup of black coffee that he woke completely. By the time they were all in the car, Desmond was a happy camper and screeching happily as they pulled into Jackson Park. There was a playground and a small lake, lots of land and plenty of space to let them run. He was pulled away before the other three were out as Desmond held his hand, toddling away and calling for Shaun. He could feel the bag bouncing at his hip as the child pulled him along, and he smiled when Desmond shrieked at the sight of a young boy with red-ish hair playing in the sandbox. The child looked up and brightened, waving with a smile. Altair straightened as he toddled away to the sandbox.
"Over here!"
He saw a proper looking woman sitting on a bench, and he made his way over, sitting down as she shook her head. He let his arms rest over the back of the bench, one outstretched to reserve the space for Malik. Unnecessary, but he didn't care.
"They are full of energy today. Lord help me: Shaun would not sit still at all, and every few minutes he'd ask if it was time to go to the park. Marjan Hastings."
He shook her hand. "Altair Ibn-La'Ahad. Pleasure to meet you.
Altair chuckled as Malik came over, plopping down beside him.
"Ezio's all ready found Cristina."
"And Kadar?" Altair murmured.
"He's playing with some kid from his class. Rauf, I think his name was?"
Altair sighed, tilting his head back to look at the sky as Malik seemed right at home with his arm around his shoulders. He heard Malik introduce himself.
"You two are awful young to be raising kids."
Altair's head flopped to side to look at the woman.
"Are you… together?"
He smirked. "Not quite. More like… extremely close best friends. I can't raise my two little brothers alone."
"Well, I'm glad you have such a strong bond with someone else. I couldn't imagine raising my Shaun without my husband, and there's only one child there."
Malik chuckled, closing his eyes, "We pull through with three of them. It helps we don't have to worry about money yet."
"What grades are you in?"
"College freshman next year," Malik said. "But I'm staying home to help watch Kadar. We're both going to college thirty minutes away."
"Are you planning on staying—"
"No. I'm sick of taking care of my brothers. My mother can quit her excessive travelling and stay home to watch them for once."
Marjan raised an eyebrow. "It seems odd Malik is willing to stay, but you aren't."
"In all fairness," Malik said, "I've left him plenty of times so I wouldn't have to help with Desmond."
He heard her hum, and he watched the clouds overhead. There was silence, and Altair reveled in the quiet and the feel of Malik leaning against his arm.
"Well, I think you should stay at home, Altair. From a mother's perspective, I don't think you realize how much those kids love you."
Altair scoffed. "They can shove it. I shouldn't be raising my brothers. I should freaking out over who I'm going to take to prom, or something that comes with senior year. But instead, I'm going to be at home, watching my two-year-old brother and hoping I can get more than four hours of sleep."
"You didn't even want to go to prom," Malik murmured.
"I was making a point, Malik."
His best friend smirked. He growled, and he felt a hand on his leg. He looked to see Marjan giving him a worried look.
"I know it seems unfair, but I do believe you aren't giving your brothers enough of a chance."
"I like Ezio enough," Altair said, his eyes narrowing. "But Desmond? There are times I want to dump him on the side of the road and let the wolves get him. Ezio can take care of himself to a minimal degree. Desmond still has to get rewards for not pissing in his bed."
He saw her shake her head before drawing a book from her side.
"I know it seems like there's no promising future, but imagine the pride you'll feel when all of the effort you put into him comes around, and you have a fine young man standing at graduation, holding the diploma you helped him get. Toddlers can't love like you can love. They love you based on what you can give them."
"I don't care. I'm sick of fucking giving. You know: I'll have to give up my own graduation if my mother doesn't show up to take care of him. What kind of life is this? I sure as hell didn't ask for it."
"I'm sure God put you in charge of their lives for a reason. Your suffering will inevitably make you and them stronger."
"I'm leaving them. I'm fucking sick of taking care of a two-year-old."
She shook her head. "I'm sure you'll find you're missing your life when you leave them behind."
"They aren't my kids. They're 'Mrs. Miles'' kids, and she left them here with me."
They were silent a while longer, and eventually, he saw Desmond come hobbling over, leading Shaun with one hand, his stuffed tiger dragging behind him in the other. He watched as the boy pulled out the blanket as started to walk off.
"Where are you going, Desmond?"
"Lake! Naptime!"
Altair rubbed his eyes as Desmond rolled the tiger in the blanket. "Fine. But stay away from the water, all right?"
"No water! No water!"
He watched them walk off, and he grunted. "He's gonna drown, isn't he?"
"Probably," Malik muttered.
Altair cursed under his breath.
"A toddler who puts himself to sleep?"
"Only today. And he'll probably go swimming, too."
"I would trust the boy. Shaun will keep him in line."
He grunted and rose. "I'm not so sure. I could see him rolling around and straight into the lake. I should probably go—"
"Altair," Malik said firmly, "sit down. You've been running around since you woke up. I'll go make sure they're firmly settled down."
Altair plopped down without protest as Malik rose and walked off. He waited until he got back.
"All right, their firmly bunked on the side of the lake. Don't worry about them. Kadar and Rauf are watching them."
Altair grunted. He was worried. He heard Mrs. Hastings chuckle.
"I never would've believed that you didn't want to take care of them."
"I don't, but I can't just leave them on their own."
"What happens if your mother doesn't come home next year?"
Altair frowned. It was the same feeling of defeat he got every time he thought about it. "I'll just have to stay at home. I can't leave them alone."
He wanted to wipe that smile off her face.
"I'm not heartless. I'm not going to leave a ten-year-old to take care of a two-year-old."
"Regardless of what he says," Malik began as he picked up the book from inside the bag, "Altair is a real softie. He loves his kids. He's just an ass and can't admit it to himself."
"Malik," he growled. "Shut up."
"I'm sure you're a good father," Mrs. Hastings said. "And if you tell me when your graduation is, I'll come with Shaun and watch over Desmond for you."
His eyes widened. "Are you sure? I couldn't impose upon you."
She smiled, patting his leg. "I can be imposed upon. See how well you've raised your brothers, I think you're due to a good night of partying. I'll take the three of them home with me."
He was silent, thinking the option over. Here was this random woman, offering to take his brothers for the night—and Malik's, but more importantly, his. He wasn't entirely sure he could just start trusting her. Sure, Shaun seemed like a nice enough kid, but—
"We'll take you up on that offer, Mrs. Hastings. Thank you."
He jumped and glared at Malik, who frowned. "You're thinking too much, Altair. I can hear it. Just take her offer."
He looked sheepishly at her. "Thank you, Mrs. Hastings."
"It's okay: I understand your worry."
He looked at the ground, giving half an ear as Malik and Marjan talked. Soon after, Kadar came running up, looking panicked. He grabbed Altair's sleeve and tugged.
"Altair—Robert's going to drop Ezio in the lake!"
Altair took off, accidently pushing Kadar over as he sprinted toward the lake. Ezio didn't know how to swim either, although he had promised he would get him swimming lessons over the summer. And maybe take them with him. It wasn't long until he could see Robert holding Ezio over the water's edge—without Desmond or Shaun nearby. He bent over, picking up a rock lying on the ground, and threw it with surprising accuracy, striking Robert in the head. The man snarled and dropped him, and Altair pushed him out of the way, catching Ezio before he could fall in. He knew the water was deep at the end of the pier, the natural lake bottom slippery and probably willing to swallow Ezio whole.
He hit the water as he spilled over the edge, curled around his younger brother, and stood, the water lapping around his chest as Ezio sputtered and coughed in his arms. He wiped his eyes as he felt his way back to the edge. He set Ezio down, gave him a thorough onceover, and then turned his attention to Robert—who was fleeing. With a snarl, he chased after him and caught him easily. He tackled Robert, fisting his hands in his shirt.
"Where is Desmond?" he growled, and Robert smiled that ugly smile.
"Why should I tell you? You'll just raise little faggot children."
He smashed his fist into Robert's nose and rose, lifting him off the ground as the blood poured out of his nose. He could hear Shaun behind him, screaming and crying, and he snarled again.
"Where is he!" he shouted, jerking him like a ragdoll. "Where the hell did your goonies take him!"
Robert sneered, and Altair smashed his face into the ground, wrapping his hands around his neck as he sat on his chest, dripping wet and furious.
"Where the fuck did you take my baby brother?"
Robert made a garbled noise, and he snarled again.
"Where did you take him?"
"That way!"
He looked up to see Kadar pointing in a direction. Ezio had come over, and Altair watched as his younger brother stomped Robert in the gut. Malik had rushed over, and Mrs. Hastings wasn't too far behind. He followed the finger from Kadar, and realized it was toward Robert's house. With a snarl, he tightened his hands. He knew Robert hated him, but taking his brother was too much. He could tease him; he could taunt him—he could even take Altair's life, but touching his brother was one step too far.
"Are they at your house?"
When the man didn't respond, Ezio smashed his foot into Robert's balls, and Robert cried out in pain, nodding "yes." Altair rose, driving his heel into the man's stomach and listening as he swore. He didn't know what Robert was planning, but he wasn't going to give him time to find out. He grabbed Malik.
"Stay here. Keep him down until I find Desmond. Watch Ezio."
Malik nodded as he ran toward the car, hopping in the seat and pulling out with squeal of tires. He drove quickly along the streets, running several red lights and hearing the police behind him, but his heart was pounding, and he had a million thoughts running through his head, each one concerned for Desmond and how Robert had better not have harmed him at all or else Altair would fucking murder him for harming his little brother. He stopped at Robert's house, opening the door and hearing the police screech behind him. He smashed the window with a garden gnome and climbed through. He could hear Desmond's screaming as he grabbed a glass shard, noticing the open basement door. He ran to the stairs.
"Desmond?" he shouted, pounding down the stairs only to struck in the gut with a bat.
Snarling, he was on his feet in an instant, and he grabbed the bat as goonie one—Sibrand?—raised it again. He kneed him in the balls and ripped the bat from him, smashing the bat into his cheek—that damn football helmet the man always fucking wore covering his cheek. Still, the man crumpled, and he looked around to see Desmond wrapped up in his blanket, crying and screaming.
"Desmond!"
He rushed over and unwrapped the child, hugging him tightly, and when Desmond screamed, Altair moved in time to avoid another bat. Desmond screamed again, and Altair lashed out, kicking blindly at the second man. His little brother wrapped his arms, almost suffocating, as he screamed and cried into his shoulder. He saw the police enter the room, and he stepped back as the second goonie froze—William, or something like that.
"Shhhhh, Desmond, calm down, baby."
He started rocking gently, feeling the adrenaline rush leaving him as he tried to shush Desmond. There was absolutely no word to describe the relief, so deep and complete, that struck him in that moment. There was blood on his hand from the glass shard, and his hand hurt, but Desmond was fine and perfectly okay, so so was he.
"It's okay, kiddo. It's all right, Desmond. I'm never letting him touch you again. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."
He kept rocking and hugging Desmond tightly as he listened half-heartedly to the police. He could feel Desmond's heat through his cold, soaking clothes. He needed to call Malik. His little brother was okay. He was unharmed, and Robert hadn't touched him. He breathed deep, trying to keep the tears back. Desmond was safe and unhurt.
The boy screamed when a policeman walked over, and Altair adjusted him, holding him close and trying to calm him down. He bit the inside of his cheek as he hugged his little brother, trying to keep the tears back. He was so relieved Desmond was okay. He looked when he felt a hand on his shoulder.
"Son, we're going to need you to tell us just what's going on here."
He opened his mouth to speak, but the overwhelming relief caused him simply to shake his head and utter Desmond's name as he held his brother closer. It was another two hours before he could even call Malik. They were in the station, filling everything out and getting advice on a lawyer, when he had a phone in his hands. His hand was bandaged tightly, and he could feel the dull throb of the injury and the stitches from the medical team called in, but at least Desmond was okay.
"Altair?"
He exhaled into the phone, Desmond still clinging to him like a monkey.
"Altair? Isn't everything okay?"
"He's fine. He's fine. He's okay."
"Altair… Altair? Are you crying?"
"He's okay—Malik, he's okay." He couldn't stop the tears from coming. "He's okay, Malik; he's okay."
"Altair—Altair, dear," he heard Mrs. Hastings' voice. "Love, what happened? Is everything all right?"
"He's okay," Altair sobbed into the phone. "He's okay."
"Are you all right?"
"He's okay, Mrs. Hastings. He's fine and alive, and Robert's goonies didn't harm him."
"Oh, love," her voice was so soothing, and he could hear Shaun and the others in the background, "I'm so glad. Is Desmond there?"
"Desmond?" He bounced the bundle in his arm, and Desmond whined, gripping him tighter. "Will you say hello to Shaun?"
He held the phone to his ear.
"Shaun?"
When he heard Shaun's voice, Desmond started crying again.
"I want Shaun! I want Shaun!"
Altair dropped the phone, trying to comfort the boy. After a bit, he heard Malik yelling at him from the floor, and he stooped over, picking up the phone.
"What the Hell, idiot? Don't just—"
"Did you find his stuffed tiger?"
"Yeah. The thing is filthy."
"Come down to the station. Bring it with you. And bring Mrs. Hastings and her son. Just in case."
"The police are here. They've taken Robert into custody and to the hospital."
"How's Ezio?"
"Feisty as ever. He tried to beat up Robert some more after the cops had him on the gurney. They were laughing as they held him back. And then he smoozed his way into Mrs. Hastings heart and impressed the adults with his bravery of trying to defend Desmond."
Altair hugged Desmond as those tiny arms clutched around his neck again. He shushed him.
"Take Ezio and Kadar home. Make them a meal. Put them to bed. And give Mrs. Hastings the money in my wallet. Ask her to bring us something to eat. Something with small foods Desmond can eat. Like Chinese, with fried rice."
He heard Malik speak to her. "She's on her way."
"There's a gun in my closet, hidden in the back. Take that out and wait till we get home."
He heard Malik snort.
"Please."
"I will. I promise. But no more crying. You're such a woman."
Altair laughed quietly, tears still streaming down his cheeks. "Thanks, Malik."
He was sitting on a bench when Mrs. Hastings came running in with Shaun in one hand, and Chinese and the other, stuffed Shaun in the other.
"Oh, I'm so sorry that I took so long, dear. I went ahead and washed the tiger—"
He jumped, frightened and holding Desmond tighter. Desmond woke with a yelp, and Altair blinked rapidly, taking a minute to figure out where he was. Desmond made grabby hands at the tiger, and he curled around the stuffed animal. Shaun climbed on the bench and into Altair's injured arm to hold Desmond's hand.
"Altair?"
He looked at the woman.
"I've got your food."
He nodded, yawning and adjusting the kids in his arms. "Thank you, Mrs. Hastings."
"It's no problem, dear. What happened to your hand?"
"I busted Robert's window with a garden gnome and grabbed a piece of glass on accident." He nodded wearily. "But yeah. We should be able to go home soon."
"You have school in the morning, don't you?"
He nodded. "But I might take Desmond with me."
"Oh! Malik told me to tell you that I have the g-u-m-m-i-e-s for Desmond."
He smiled softly, opening the tub of fried rice awkwardly for Desmond.
"Shaun, dear, get off his lap. Let them eat."
He let her take her child, and it wasn't long till the food was gone, and he was offering the gummies to Desmond, who ended up sharing them with the Hastings child. Not too much sooner after that, he was driving home in a daze, and he found himself walking through the door to find Malik asleep on the couch. He pulled the gun from his hands and nudged him gently, telling him to go to bed. Malik gave him a worried look, and he trudged upstairs to tuck Desmond in, only to fall asleep at the foot of the bed.
He woke to find Desmond curled in his arms, and a blanket draped across him. Something smelled good, and Desmond was watching him with big, brown eyes, clutching his tiger close. He picked the child up with a groan and trudged down the stairs, not looking forward to the uphill legal battle he had just gotten himself into. He walked into the kitchen to find Mrs. Hastings at the oven, and Shaun at the table.
"Desmond!" he shrieked.
There was a note on the table. He picked it up and read.
"Novice,
I let Mrs. Hastings in. Take it easy today. Ezio and Kadar are at school, no doubt regaling the tale to all their classmates. Ezio was pretty impressed by your pier save. He knows you don't like water. And don't worry: I'll make sure to get ALL your homework for you. So be prepared, because I'm a tougher teacher than those cheesepuffs at school.
And the legal battle? Yeah, we're all here for it and ready to fight.
But don't expect me to get all sentimental and crap.
Malik"
He found himself smiling as he set his brother down. Desmond was dithering away with Shaun in some half-English speech as Mrs. Hastings set out a breakfast.
"Feeling a bit more chipper now that the worst of the emotions are over?"
He looked at her and nodded slowly. "Yeah."
"If you need help with the legal battle, know we're here for you."
He nodded again, smiling slightly as he sat down. His clothes were stiff and smelled of dirty lake water, but he certainly felt better. His hand throbbed and he could see the blood in his clothes, but it wasn't of much concern. He watched as Desmond looked at him and smiled brightly, and his heart soared at the scream of happiness he got.
"Altair stay home today! Altair stay home!"
He chuckled. There was nothing cuter than right then as Desmond pounded the table with his tiny little fists, the tiger jerking with the movements. He loved his little brother.
"Yes, Desmond, I'm staying home today."
"I dare say you'll be living at home for quite a while more, hm?"
He looked at Mrs. Hastings, who was giving him a knowing look. He shook his head, smiling softly.
"Yeah, I guess I will be. Desmond, why don't we color later on today and make some more decorations for the fridge?"
"Yeah!" Desmond screeched, and Altair laughed.