Hello readers! Here is another chapter for The Bad Life of Billy the Kid. The next few chapters are going to be different, in which there will be some time skips as Billy continues to grow and be raised by The Bad Guys and how they grow closer together. This particular chapter will focus on the major milestones in Billy's infancy. Hope you enjoy it! I do not own The Bad Guys or Harry Houdini. The Bad Guys movie is owned by Dreamworks and the books are the property of Aaron Blabey.
Chapter 4: Growing Up Bad: Part 1
First Word
"Come on, Billy. Say, Shark!" said the master of disguise with a big toothy smile.
Billy sat on his lap, staring blankly back at the giant predator. His infant mind was unable to comprehend the request.
Shark pointed to Snake in the passenger seat of the car.
"What about Snake? Can you say, Snake?" asked Shark. "Or Wolf? Can you say, Wolf?"
"You're wasting your breath, Shark. His brain is still the size of a breadcrumb. He probably doesn't even know what the color red is," replied the reptile.
"Well, it's better than picking up your sailor's mouth. The last thing we need is two cold-blooded grumps," retorted the large predator.
Snake turned around to face Shark. "Since when did you care about what the kid says? And for your information, my vocabulary could do some good for him."
"Right, because you are such a fountain of wisdom," said Webs sarcastically.
The arachnid sat on the dashboard typing on her laptop.
Wolf turned around and said, "Alright, knock it off. Remember, we've got a job to do. Everyone remembers the plan?"
The group nodded while saying in unison, "Yeah!"
The leader flashed his signature sly smirk. "Then let's make like chameleons and blend in."
The group dawned on their disguises and stepped out of the car. Today, the new aquarium was celebrating its grand opening to the public, allowing everyone to enter for free. Various tourists, families, and school field trips made their way inside making the front entrance congested.
Snake wore a white button shirt with fake arms. On his head was a fake bald cap with white hair strands. A metal cane was glued to one of his arms, giving the impression he was crippled.
Shark wore a purple blouse with a blue polka-dot design and a dark blue ankle-high skirt. On his face were a pair of fifties-style fake cat eye glasses and some pink lipstick. His head was covered by a thick, curly brown wig.
Piranha walked beside them wearing a striped t-shirt, jean shorts, and a pinwheel hat on his head. He licked a large lollipop with an innocent demeanor.
Wolf was dressed in a blue polo shirt with khakis. His snout was covered by a fake bushy mustache and wore a brown toupee on his head. A pipe stuck out of the side of his mouth.
Shark pushed a stroller with Billy inside, dressed in his onesie.
Due to being the smallest in the group, Webs hid in the diaper bag strapped behind the stroller.
Pretending to be an innocent family, the Bad Guys blended in with the crowd to enter the aquarium. The security staff was none the wiser.
Inside, the group made their way through the main entrance as the large crowds of visitors wandered around. Some of them examined the directory for the various exhibits while children jumped and laughed from excitement. Staff members with matching blue and green uniforms wandered around the area, assisting the guests or cleaning any litter.
While Shark pushed the stroller, Webs unzipped the bag to peek out and scan the area. She found the closest staff member with his back turned to them and made her move. The hacker stealthily slipped out of the bag and crawled her way towards the employee while avoiding the many pairs of stomping feet. Without getting squashed, Webs successfully crawled up the man's leg and stuck to his back as he walked towards the door labeled Staff Only.
The rest of the group wandered around the aquarium keeping up their charade. Billy stared in awe at the many colorful fish in the tanks.
Through their comms, the Bad Guys could hear Webs say, "I'm in! There is a staff entrance not too far from where you're dropping off Billy. It should lead you to a catwalk above the tank."
"Thanks, Webs," replied Wolf.
The group made their way to the coral reef exhibit. As the name suggested, the tanks on either side held large clusters of coral and sea anemones with various bright colorful fish swimming inside.
However, the real prize for the Bad Guys was at the very end of the hall, where a giant oyster sat in a tank of its own. The label underneath the tank read Opal The Oyster. The shellfish itself was practically the size of a treasure chest, and just like a treasure chest, it hid something valuable for the Bad Guys to steal.
A staff woman gave a tour to a group of kids as she explained, "And this here, children, is Opal, one of the biggest oysters to be found in the Caribbean. Now, what's very special about Opal is that she hides a very large pearl in her shell that is 8.595" in diameter and a circumference of 27", which is the exact size of a bowling ball!"
"Woooooaaaaaah!" said all of the kids in unison.
As if on cue, the giant oyster lifted its shell revealing the large, white shiny orb inside. The Bad Guys stared in awe at the humongous pearl laying snugly in the shellfish. This was what they came here for.
Across from the tour stood a group of police officers listening to a large policewoman with messy red hair. She stood with a high sense of authority and intimidation with her immense muscles and stern glare in her eyes.
The policewoman faced the group of officers, speaking in a gruff voice. "I know our recent attempts to uphold the law have met with unsatisfactory results. Mostly due to the group of thieves who call themselves, The Bad Guys. However, we have a responsibility to keep the peace and we will not let a group of flea bags jeopardize that! Even though this is just an aquarium, some crooks are crazy enough to steal the valuable and rare species that are kept here. So, I ask each and every one of you to stay vigilant, be alert, and most importantly, report any suspicious activity."
"That's our cue," whispered Wolf. "Do it, Shark."
Without drawing attention, Shark picked up Billy from the stroller and placed him in front of the tour group and police officers. With the diversion in place, the Bad Guys stood off to the side and waited for the infant to work his charm. It didn't take long for the child to make a loud enough squeal to draw everyone's attention.
They all stared at the tiny infant for a few seconds before crowding around him and going, "Aaaaaaaawwwwwwww!"
Even the chief's heart melted at the sight of the cute baby.
With everyone distracted, the Bad Guys snuck their way through the staff door while Billy continued to work the crowd. Everyone took turns playing with the baby, making funny faces and tickling him. Even though Billy was being crowded by everyone, he could still see the tank containing the giant oyster; its shell closed shut.
However, the shellfish wasn't the only thing in the tank this time. Sinking in from above were Shark and Piranha both in their black thieving suits. They swam down to the oyster and attempted to pry open the shell with their fins. But both thieves were having difficulty as they pulled with all of their might. They even tried to hit the oyster and wedge a piece of coral in between, but neither of them prevailed.
The whole time, Billy laughed and clapped as he watched Shark and Piranha struggle to open the oyster. The staff, guests, and police officers laughed back at the infant's cute display. Luckily, for both of them, the glass in the tank was soundproof, so all of the noise the two fishes made inside was muted.
Piranha was getting frustrated to the point he was ready to break the shell apart. With an angry kick, the oyster opened its exterior and the Columbian fish immediately swam inside to grab the pearl. The moment the crazy brawler hugged the large gem, the oyster closed its shell again with Piranha inside.
Shark panicked as he attempted to open the shell to not only get the pearl but to free his friend.
Billy continued to laugh at this comedic display with everyone being oblivious to the hysteria behind them.
Shark managed to pry open the shell to reach his fin inside, only for the oyster to snap down on it. Billy could see the master of disguise scream in pain as he shook his fin in different directions, trying to get the giant shellfish off. The infant's laughter grew louder with everyone else laughing with him, thinking he was adorable.
Eventually, familiar green fumes seeped out of the shell of the oyster. Before long, the shellfish opened its shell in a gagging manner. The water in the tank turned a thick green, making everything completely invisible to the naked eye.
After a few minutes, the Bad Guys reemerged from the staff door in their disguises and made their way toward Billy.
In a high-pitched voice, mimicking a woman, Shark cried, "My baby!"
He quickly scooped Billy up and cradled him in his fins. "You had us so worried. How many times have your father and I told you to never wander off on your own."
"Excuse me, is he your son?" asked the chief with a skeptical glare.
"Yes, we went to look at the manta rays and our little boy just disappeared on us. Grandpa almost had a heart attack," said Wolf as he motioned to Snake.
The reptile clearly showed no sign of worry but annoyance.
The chief stared at the fake family for a few seconds before straightening her hat and giving a prideful smile. "Well, you'll be happy to know, my officers and I found your child and kept a watchful eye on him."
"Oh! Thank you, officer. How can we ever thank you?" said Shark.
The large predator overplaying his role.
"Just doing my job, ma'am," replied the large policewoman.
"Well, we appreciate you finding our son and making sure he is safe. Now, if you excuse us, we've had enough fish watching today," said Wolf.
Shark placed Billy in the stroller and the Bad Guys briskly but casually made their way out of the aquarium. Unbeknownst to everyone, the diaper bag had a huge bulge in it that was not there before. Webs unzipped the bag and peeked up with a snicker. With her was a pearl the size of a bowling ball.
Once the Bad Guys were out of sight, everyone turned in puzzlement at the oyster tank that was now filled with thick green water.
"Eew! They need to fix the filter," said one of the guests.
The Bad Guys drove off in Wolf's cars as they laughed and admired the large shiny pearl they stole. Both Piranha and Shark looked worse for wear. The large predator's fin had a red mark from the oyster's shell while the Columbian fish looked like he was chewed up and spat out.
"I told you guys to use the feather to tickle it," said Wolf.
"At least we got the pearl," said Webs.
"Next time, let's pick a job that doesn't involve swimming," groaned Piranha.
"Or shellfish," added Shark.
"But hey, Billy pulled through again. It could've been a lot worse if he wasn't around," said the hacker.
Wolf looked at the infant through the rear-view mirror; the child strapped comfortably in his car seat.
The leader smiled and said, "I couldn't have said it better myself, Webs."
Suddenly, I tiny voice said, "Webs!"
All of the Bad Guys froze with wide eyes at the mysterious cry. It didn't take them long to figure out the source as they all turned to Billy in his car seat.
The infant sat innocently before his lips move and out came the word, "Webs!"
Shark let out a big gasp as he smiled and cried, "Oh my gosh! He said his first word! Billy said his first word!"
"No way!" cried Piranha.
Wolf and Webs were shocked the most out of the group.
"Wow!...How about that," said the bewildered leader.
"He's not even a year old and he already said his first word," said the arachnid.
Wolf shrugged. "Guess the kid is just a quick study."
Webs continued to stare at the child. "And…his first word he spoke was my…"
"Webs!" cried Billy again looking at her.
The hacker struggled to comprehend what she felt. It was a mixture of joy and something else, something she never felt before. Like that feeling of beating her high score on her favorite video game, except better.
Slowly, Webs's slacked jaw turned into a smile and her eyes teared up. Unbeknownst to the hacker and the rest of the group, her abdomen slightly swayed back and forth. Webs felt the weird motion in her body and quickly looked back, but her abdomen was still again. The arachnid cocked a brow in confusion.
"Well whoopty doo, as if his crying wasn't annoying enough," groaned Snake.
"You're just jealous because he called for his Aunty Webs and not his Grunkle Snake," retorted the hacker.
"Why would I care if the little brat said my name? The last thing I need is for it to repeat words over and over again, like a parrot," said Snake.
"Come on, Snake. Billy is part of the crew now, which means we treat him like one of us," said Wolf.
"Let me remind you I only agreed to this because I was outvoted. Yeah, the small fry has been useful, but it's going to take more than diversions to fully convince me he's got what it takes to role with us," replied the limbless reptile.
The leader rolled his eyes with a smirk as he drove his car through the street.
First Steps
Snake pressed his head against the thick, reinforced steel door as his tail carefully turned the knob from left to right. Audible clicking sounds echoed within the closed jewelry store as the rest of the Bad Guys waited patiently for their reptilian safe cracker to unlock the vault.
Billy was strapped to Wolf's chest via baby carrier; the young infant sporting his own black suit to match the Bad Guys.
"This is taking too long! Why not just let me smash the thing open?" whined Piranha.
"One, breaking the vault open will trip the alarms; and two, even though we've seen you go against ridiculous odds, we doubt you can smash through reinforced steel," said Wolf.
"Hey, if I can put fifty cops in the hospital, I can break through that thing like tin foil!" retorted Piranha.
Snake turned to the group. "Will you all shut it! I'm trying to work here. Wolf, remind me again why we brought the kid this time. There are no guards or witnesses we need to distract."
"How else is he going to learn? If we want the kiddo to get better, he has to watch how the professionals do it," replied the canine.
"Plus, Billy is part of the team now, and you know our number one rule," said Webs.
"Steal everything?" replied Piranha.
"No! The other one: Everyone in the crew has a part," said the hacker.
"If the brat's role is being annoying then he's doing great," grumbled Snake.
Eventually, the vault door made a loud clink as the reptile smirked and pushed open the large steel door.
The interior of the vault was wide enough to fit a fire truck. On the other side stood a pedestal with a large red ruby displayed on top. The precious cut gem sparkled under a single light inside. However, the only thing standing between the Bad Guys and their prize was an extended grid of laser trip wire; all of them were directed at different angles, creating a large, glowing, red web.
Wolf pulled out a penny and tossed it into the grid. The small bronze coin made contact with the thin needle of light and instantly melted from the intense heat. The smoking penny jingled on the ground with all of the Bad Guys staring at it in horror, making loud gulps in their throats.
"Just as I thought," said the leader. "Webs, can you shut it down?"
The arachnid cracked all eight of her legs. "Let me see what I can do."
She whipped out her laptop and typed on the keyboard to disable the lasers.
After a few moments, Webs sighed before turning to the rest of the group. "Okay, I got good news and bad news. The bad news is I'm unable to completely shut down the grid due to a complex code installed in the system. Whoever wrote it really wanted to make sure no one stole the ruby. The good news is I can play with the laser grid pattern to build an easier path for one of us to get through. It's going to have to be someone small and limber enough."
"Well, that rules out Shark for obvious reasons," said Snake.
The large fish glared at the reptile and growled, "You want to start with me now, Mr. No Hands?"
Wolf got in between the two before either of them threw the first punch. "Knock it off, you two! Webs is right, it needs to be someone who-"
But the canine was unable to finish his sentence when he realized his chest felt lighter. Looking down, Wolf's eyes widened in horror at the discovery of the baby carrier being empty. The rest of the Bad Guys followed their leader's gaze and shared the same expression of fear.
"Uh…guys…where's Billy?" asked Webs.
Wolf detached the carrier and frantically examined to see how the infant was able to slip out of the pouch.
He turned to Shark and growled, "You told me this was childproof!"
"It is! The little guy is just an expert escape artist. He's like Harry Houdini," replied the master of disguise.
A familiar tiny giggle was heard as all of the Bad Guys turned towards the open vault. Billy crawled through the laser grid towards the ruby.
"BILLY!" shouted the Bad Guys in unison.
The child was too far for any of them to reach and they didn't want to risk ending up like the penny.
"Webs, hurry before the lasers burn him to a crisp!" cried Wolf.
The arachnid typed frantically on her laptop as sweat poured down her face.
"If only we were so lucky," said Snake.
"Shut up, Snake!" yelled Shark.
The hacker put her skills on overdrive as she altered the grid to shut down in certain areas to create a clear path for Billy as he crawled through the vault. This proved to be easier said than done since another laser wire would turn on when Webs shut down another. It was like a stressful puzzle. Billy did not make it easier as he zigzagged through the vault on his hands and knees. The Bad Guys could only watch anxiously as their little trainee made his way across the vault.
After a stressful ten minutes, Billy made it to the pedestal where the ruby sat. Using his hands, he pushed the pedestal, making the ruby shake and rock up top. The Bad Guys frantically called for Billy to stop, fearing either the baby would trip the alarm or get burned by one of the lasers. Eventually, gravity took effect as the large, red stone fell off the pedestal and into the infant's hands.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
Billy smiled at the big shiny gem that was as big as his bottle. Being that the ruby reminded him of said bottle, he placed it in his mouth and sucked on it.
"Oh great! Now he's getting his drool all over it," said Snake.
"You get your drool all over everything you swallow and regurgitate," retorted Wolf.
"How are we going to get Billy and the ruby now?" asked Piranha.
But the Columbian fish got his answer when Billy pulled the gem out of his mouth and saw the others by the entrance.
With the ruby still in his hands, Billy struggled as he shifted his legs underneath. With his feet planted firmly on the ground, the infant slowly rose with his legs shaking. All of the Bad Guys stared in awe as Billy stood up on his feet.
"What's he doing?" asked Piranha.
Billy wobbled a few times, nearly falling back down as he took his first step. He took another and another as the child made his way back towards the Bad Guys with the ruby.
The group of thieves could only stare at Billy with wide eyes and slacked jaws in amazement.
Shark smiled and cried, "He's Walking! Billy is walking!"
Piranha shouted something celebratory in his native tongue.
"He's coming back. Webs, the lasers!" said Wolf.
The hacker groaned and went back to typing on her laptop to create another safe path for Billy. With the child walking, it made it more difficult for the arachnid.
Wolf, Shark, and Piranha all knelt at the entrance coaxing Billy to come to them.
"Come here, kiddo, come this way," said Wolf.
"Over here, little buddy, come to Uncle Shark!" said the large predator.
"Come on, chico, you can do it!" said Piranha.
Billy put in all of his efforts with every step, trying to reach his family while Webs made sure the lasers did not burn him.
After another stressful moment of hacking and dodging lasers, Billy was close enough that he fell into Wolf's arms. The leader stood up and gently plucked the ruby from his hands.
Webs was sprawled out in front of her laptop, panting heavily from exhaustion.
They all smiled down at the child.
"Would you look at that, our little rookie is growing up," said Piranha.
Shark was clearly choked up over witnessing Billy learning how to walk for the first time.
He sniffed and wiped a tear from his eye as he spoke in a cracked voice, "It feels like yesterday we took him on his first heist."
Wolf continued smiling at the child as Billy wrapped his hands around one of the canine's fingers.
"That's our boy," said the leader.
He felt that same feeling again when they first met Billy. How the child touched his face with his soft hands. Wolf didn't know what this was, but it felt different than how he usually felt. Piranha and Shark felt it too. Billy was having this strange effect on all of them, but what was it?
Warm Blooded
Monday
It was another typical morning in the hideout as Shark cooked breakfast this time. The others were gathered around the table while Billy sat in his high chair, ready to be fed. What Wolf realized, no one got up to feed the child yet. He looked at the whiteboard, drawn with a magic marker, to resemble a chart. Today, Snake was supposed to feed Billy.
He turned to his best friend, who sat in his chair, sipping coffee and reading the newspaper.
"Snake, aren't you forgetting something?" asked Wolf.
The reptile glanced at the leader in confusion. "What?"
The lupine jerked his head towards the whiteboard. "You're supposed to feed Billy today."
Snake glanced at the chart and then looked at the infant across the kitchen.
In a fake tone, Snake replied, "Ooohh, right! As soon as I finish my coffee."
The reptile sat quietly on his side of the table, continuing to read his paper. He picked up his mug with his tail and took an abnormally long sip.
Wolf glared at the safe cracker with irritation. He knew his friend was stalling.
Tarantula came up and pointed to the whiteboard. "Uh, your name is listed for feeding today!"
"Hey, I only agreed to keep the little brat in the gang to help us out on jobs, not play nanny with him," retorted Sake.
"Well, we all agreed on taking turns caring for Billy, which is why we created the chart," said the arachnid.
"Then have Piranha feed the little stink bomb," replied the reptile.
"I already fed him yesterday," complained the Columbian fish.
"You can't keep avoiding your responsibilities with Billy, Snake. Sooner or later, you're going to have to play your part," said Wolf.
Snake slammed his mug on the table and glared at the rest of the group growling, "Watch me."
The leader glared at his friend and stood up. "Fine! I'll feed him."
"Don't forget the umbrella," said Webs.
Wolf marched over to the high chair while Snake smirked and went back to his paper.
Tuesday
Billy wailed throughout the whole hideout while Shark bounced him up and down in his fins. Snake laid on the couch watching television.
"Snake! Weren't you supposed to put Billy to sleep tonight?" shouted the large predator over the baby's crying.
Without saying a word, the reptile turned up the volume to drown out the noise.
"Oh, real mature!" retorted Shark.
Wednesday
Snake slithered across the whiteboard when something made his eyes widen in horror. His name was located in the one responsibility he did not want out of all the ways to care for Billy: Diaper Changing.
"Nope," said Snake.
The reptile glanced around the hideout before using his tail to wipe off his name and used the magic marker to replace it with Webs.
After making the change to the whiteboard, Snake put the marker back and slithered away, whistling to himself.
As if on cue, the hacker crawled by and looked up at the board.
"Seriously, again? Come on!" whined Webs.
Snake could only chuckle to himself.
Thursday
Snake played a game of solitaire at the table while Billy sat in his crib. The child smacked his lips together. Piranha walked by and saw what Billy was doing.
He looked at the chart and turned towards the safe cracker at the table. "Snake, it's your turn to feed Billy his botella!"
"I'm in the middle of something," replied Snake.
Piranha retorted, "You know, this is getting really old, you overgrown slug! It's stressful enough when it's our time to watch the chico, but it isn't fair to us when we have to pick up your slack!"
Snake turned to the Columbian fish. "Since when have I ever been fair? We're bad guys, remember? Besides, it's no different from how you act sometimes. Although, we don't have to change you when you stink up the place."
Piranha had that familiar crazed look in his eyes as he gritted his teeth. "You think you're funny, huh? I'll show you funny!"
The Columbian fish took Billy's bottle and shattered it against the brick wall. He pointed the jagged end at Snake and was ready to charge until Wolf and Shark stepped in. The two struggled to restrain the brawler back from shredding Snake like confetti.
"Let me at him! Let me at him!" shouted Piranha.
"Calm down, Piranha!" said Wolf.
"Find your happy place," said Shark.
Snake just went back to his game of solitaire while Wolf and Shark continued to restrain the crazed Columbian fish.
Friday
Snake examined some gemstones through an eye loupe snug around his one eye, but his focus was interrupted by the familiar crying of a certain baby in his crib.
Even though the reptile got used to Billy's wails, he couldn't stand the noise whenever he slept or worked on something important; it was too distracting.
"Guys, the little gremlin needs something!" shouted Snake.
But there was no response.
"Guys?" he repeated.
The safecracker pulled out the eye loupe to observe his surroundings. There was no one else in the hideout beside him and Billy. Snake growled and slithered around the area, trying to find any of his other crew mates to quiet Billy. But much to the reptile's surprise, none of the others could be found.
"Where the heck is everyone?" asked Snake.
His question was answered when he noticed a note taped on the gate to the elevator. The safe cracker picked up the note with his tail to read what it said.
Went on recon for next job. Will be back before dark.
-Wolf, Webs, Piranha, and Shark
Snake growled as he crumbled the note in his tail; his teeth gritted in frustration.
"Well that's just great! They just up and left me with the little pest without saying anything? When they get back, they're all going to be in world of hurt!" said Snake.
Billy continued to cry as the reptile growled again and turned to the infant. "Will you knock it off already?! I don't like it as much as you do."
But the child would not stop.
Snake rubbed his head in annoyance. "Why can't you have an off switch? I don't know what the others see in you. To me, you're a vermin that likes to make our lives miserable. Yeah, you've helped with keeping the cops off our backs with your annoyingly cute face, but we are doing most of the work while you are making stupid goo-goo noises and puking all over the place. If it was up to me, you would either be in my stomach or package delivered to New Zealand. Heck, why should I even bother eating you? You probably don't even taste as good as a guinea pig."
Billy continued to cry.
Though the reptile was almost at the point of completely losing his patience with the child, the last statement he spoke only made him more curious. Snake slithered up to the crib and looked down at the small infant.
With his curiosity getting the better of him, Snake wiped out his tongue in Billy's direction to smell the air around him.
At that moment, Billy's wails fell into silence as he stared up at the reptile's long, forked tongue.
Snake pulled his tongue back in his mouth and cocked a brow in thought to comprehend the child's scent.
He shrugged and said, "Hhmm, not as good as a guinea pig but definitely better than a rat or squirrel. At least you don't reek of a dirty diaper this time."
The safe cracker used his tongue again to confirm his suspicions while Billy giggled and clapped.
Snake was taken aback by this behavior as he stared at the infant. He was happy Billy stopped crying, but why was he laughing now? Snake stuck out his tongue again and Billy giggled even louder. A genuine smile crept across the reptile's face this time.
He leaned his head into the crib to get closer to Billy. This time, Snake used his tongue as it lightly tickled the baby's skin. Billy laughed in response to the ticklish feeling. Snake pulled his head back and chuckled a little with the child. He tickled him with his tongue a few times, making the baby laugh. Even though Snake felt stupid for doing this, a part of him enjoyed it. They continued to laugh as Snake tickled Billy with his tongue.
Eventually, Snake noticed the child's familiar motion of smacking his lips together. He looked at the new baby bottle on the counter and looked back at the baby.
Snake rolled his eyes and groaned before slithering to the counter and filling the bottle with baby formula. Once it was mixed, he put the bottle in a warming unit and set the timer to heat the formula to the right temperature. The warmer made a ding sound as Snake wrapped the bottle in his tail and slithered back to the crib.
Using his slender body, he coiled around Billy's waist and hoisted him out of the crib.
Snake glared at Billy and said, "Don't get any bright ideas. I'm only doing this so you don't keep me up all night with your crying."
With that, Snake gently placed the bottle in Billy's mouth. The infant happily drank all of the formula until the bottle was empty. Afterward, Snake positioned Billy past the equivalent of his shoulder and patted the child's back with his tail. Once the child let out a burp, the safe cracker held him at eye level. Billy giggled as he reached his hands out toward the reptile. Despite how annoyed he was with Billy, Snake couldn't help but smile again.
He took Billy to the couch where he held him in a motion that was similar to cradling.
"I'll admit, you're not so annoying when you're not crying, puking, or dirtying your diaper," said Snake.
They continued to sit there where Snake tickled Billy more with his tongue and gently hoisted him in the air a few times, making the child squeal happily. The reptile even let out a few chuckles himself from how much fun he had with the new recruit.
For a moment, Snake's expression became serious as he glared at Billy and pointed at him with his tail whispering, "You breathe one word of this to the others and I will eat you."
The baby just laughed back and the safe cracker could only respond by laughing too. Snake continued to spend time with Billy until they both fell asleep on the couch. The child gently snug around Snake's body like a nest or blanket.
Unbeknownst to both of them, the clicking sound of a camera was made. Webs smirked mischievously and chuckled at the picture she took on her phone of Billy snuggling beside Snake. The hacker tapped the screen to save the photo in her gallery.
"Hellooooo, blackmail!" she whispered to herself.
There you have it, folks! Snake is slowly starting to warm up to Billy. I would like to personally thank everyone for all of the positive feedback and reviews I have received for this fanfic so far. I'm glad to know I have written something that so many people enjoy. Next chapter, as Billy gets a little older, the Bad Guys will start to teach him more about what it means to be a Bad Guy. Once again, thank you so much for your patience, and feel free to leave an appropriate review of the chapter.