And the reactions Max got after sharing that story.

Chapter 20: Reactions

After Max finished telling the story, Akashi commended him for sharing that story with them and though he was a mess, he could see that Max had the courage to tell that story and even more than that, it showed that he had enough strength to share his story to everyone and with proof of how much damage his mother and father caused him, he rose his shirt up to reveal those scars and claw marks he's had before and it just stunned everyone...especially Taiga and Tigress. Neither of them could even react or find the words to describe all of this, but they knew that it's just disturbing for a young child to go through that.

For Akashi, having those scars all over parts of his body wasn't anything new to him, but he never thought it'd happen to a 5 year old like that...especially to his own parents and it was like what he went through with Dotsu when he was younger and was heading the dark path he was forced to take.

"Thank you, Max...for sharing your story." Akashi stated.

"It takes true strength for you to do that...tell your story the way you told us and you didn't hold back." Miyo added.

Saori got up and gave Max a huge hug and said, "I wanna be there for you, Max. Like...if you want to talk to me or whatever you want, I'm here."

It was actually very nice for Saori to do that for Max and it made him feel so happy inside that Saori will be the one he can always rely on and Akashi said, "So will I."

"And me too." Miyo agreed.

Max definitely feels comforted and safe in their presence and there's nothing he wouldn't want more than anything else in the world other than feel like he's a part of the family with them. He looks at everyone and said, "Thank you."

With that, Max walks back upstairs to get some rest and while he was gone, everyone felt a sense of empathy towards him after that story and Akashi lets out a deep sigh and said, "How could a mother do something like that to her own cub?"

"It just makes me so angry that children are defenseless and by the hands of their own mother or father too...why would parents do that?" asked Miyo, almost in the verge of outrage.

"This is what happens when you choose your hormones over responsibility." Akashi stated.

Tigress agreed with Akashi's logic and she said to him, "Let's hope you don't do anything like that."

"I would never do anything like that to my own cub. I'd keep them safe, secure and loved at the same time. The fact that Max suffered through it...it makes what I've been through seem smaller. But I'm actually surprised that he can actually tell us what he went through and survived through it all." Akashi added.

Taiga blinked his eyes and he said, "You think maybe I can come around every once and a while to hang with him? You know...he kinda needs a good father figure to grow up with."

And it was like a light bulb went off on Akashi's head and he said, "That's an awesome idea. That way, Max will be around a positive role model in the same species. And I can still be his big wolf brother."

Taiga agreed with this idea while Tigress was still lost in her mind on how Max overcame this whole thing and the fact that he told it in front of everyone shows that he's got this hidden strength that he has and thought to herself, 'He's much stronger than me.'

And it hit a very personal memory for Akashi. Stay tuned to find out!