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“Do you think they will like us?”
“I’m sure they will.”
⭠ ⭠ ⭠ ⭠ ⭠
A large house stood before them, somewhat old and decrepit. It was lost in the middle of a large garden, high trees and long grass hiding the paved walkway and property from curious eyes. It once belonged to Shiro’s grandparents before they moved somewhere more appropriate for their old age. It had stayed unoccupied, as they didn’t want to sell nor rent it. However, when Shiro came to them to ask if they could sell it to him, they were ecstatic. And because they had no use of it nowadays and they were family, they simply gave it to him, no money asked - even despite Shiro’s persistence that he pays some rent at least, but “it’s your inheritance, take it!”, they said.
Though before anyone could live in the house again, they needed to do some repairs and cleaning. And for two days they tended to the garden, with the help of their friends, pulling out weeds, mowing the lawn, planting new flowers, trimming the hedge and trees. Then they fixed the roof of the house before painting the walls in white and cleaning everything. Two weeks later, they moved their furniture from their too small apartment to their house, definitely too big for two grown men.
⭢ ⭢ ⭢ ⭢ ⭢
“And we’re here!” Shiro turned around in his seat after parking the car in front of a house in a quiet neighborhood, only a few minutes away from the city. He smiled tenderly at the three heads turned his way. “This is your new home from now on, I hope you will like it.”
He moves from his seat and got out of the car to let the newcomers out as well. Once he was done with undoing everyone’s seatbelt, he let them walk freely inside the property and towards the house while Sendak took care of the bags in the trunk.
It had been on their mind for a while, Shiro thought as he watched the three kids explore the different rooms, and now they had done it. They were parents .
It had been a long process: getting along with Sendak on how many children they wanted, where they would live, the repairs of the house and the move, then all the paperwork and the meetings with the agency and the kids until they could finally take them home. And they still had so much to do yet, it was only the beginning. But it was official, they were parents.
“Shiro?” The man turned his head towards the corridor when a small voice called him. The kids had been put to bed an hour ago so he and Sendak were cuddling before a documentary on TV, but here one of them was, holding the shark plush they had been given close to their chest.
“Riel?” Shiro entangled himself from his lover and stood up. He walked to the child and crouched before them. “What is it? Are you unable to sleep?”
The child looked down before they gazed up when they saw Sendak standing behind Shiro. “What’s happening? Why aren’t you in bed?” Shiro stood up, hands on his hips. He was frowning, probably to convey how displeased he was with Sendak’s tone. It wasn’t how you talked to a child when they couldn’t sleep, even more, if it was their first night in their new home, with their new family.
“Can I take a bath?” Riel asked eventually. However, when the two men didn’t say anything back, they sighed before adding: “ please ?”
“But you took a shower just before dinner?” Shiro looked to Sendak to find some help but the Galran was just as confused. It was indeed pretty surprising for a child to ask for such a thing when they were already clean. They had had so much trouble just to put Kolak and Nor in the shower, the two others kids, one galra and the other half-galra half-human, they were simply taken aback. Shiro shrugged. “I mean, sure, but why?”
Riel nodded and walked towards the bathroom, then looked back halfway to be sure the two grown-men were following them. So demanding at such a young age, Shiro sighed but nonetheless followed them.
When they were inside the bathroom, Riel started undressing while Shiro ran some water in the bathtub. When they were done, the child sat on a little stool and looked at the water, patient. “Now, why do you want to take a bath? Aren’t you cleaned enough already?” Sendak leaned against the doorway and looked at the pink antennae moving on the little blue head.
Riel glanced quickly towards Sendak before they stood up and climbed in the bathtub. They turned towards their new guardians and pointed at the gills on their neck. “I am semi-aquatic.” And before Sendak or Shiro could ask for anymore clarifications, Riel laid in the bathtub and put their head underwater.
“Give me a minute, I’m gonna call Lance to know if I can have Blaytz’s number. It could always come in handy.” Shiro turned towards Sendak before exiting the bathroom. The Galra nodded and walked closer to the bathtub before sitting on the bigger stool they left there earlier. He crossed his arms over his chest.
What a petulant child they had. Sendak could understand being just out of the orphanage must be tough, but it wasn’t a reason to act like that with the ones who took them out of it. And so, because Sendak can be just as annoying, he took one of the plastic toys they had bought and poked the child with it (there was no way Sendak was putting his hand in the water).
Until the tenth poke, Riel turned around under the water, splashing some on Sendak doing so, and glared at the older man from there. They resurfaced enough so their mouth wasn’t underwater anymore. “Stop that.”
“Not until you tell me why you wanted to take a bath even though you took a shower not two hours ago. Aren’t six years old supposed to hate showering?”
Riel went back underwater and turned on their side, back to Sendak, and crossed their arms. They were obviously ignoring the man. But Sendak wasn’t Shiro, he wasn’t so good at dealing with others when they were being stubborn, a child wasn’t an exception. So he poked the child until they paid attention to him once more. They didn’t.
Sendak would congratulate them for staying still for so long despite all his poking if he wasn’t getting impatient. Instead, he put the toy back where he took it earlier and immersed one of his hands in the water - yikes - and gripped the child’s arm. He pulled them out of the water.
“Wh- Stop! What are you doing!” Riel turned around and struggled. “Put me down!” They were almost shouting, which could wake the others at some point, Sendak wasn’t taking it.
“I’ll let you go when you will answer me.” He said, voice deep, near a growl. His patience was wearing off.
“The orphanage!” they complied. And seeing their look of distress, Sendak lowered his hand so Riel could sit in the bathtub and he let go of their arm. The child drew their knee to their chest and looked away. They sighed. “There wasn’t any bathtub there. And we couldn’t be under the shower for too long or we were yelled at.” They looked at Sendak briefly before turning their eyes to the water, their voice shaking with their last words. It was barely a whisper. “I felt like dying.”
Sendak looked at the child, eyes wide. It wasn’t a sentence that should come out of a kid’s voice, ever. He might have been too rough, no, he had been too rough. None of the kids must have it easy back there, he should have known better.
A low growl escaped him. He was an awful guardian, an awful dad . “Fine.” He tentatively put his paw on Riel’s head and pat it when they didn’t flinch. “Tell us these things sooner, next time.” He got up and dried his hand with a towel. “Then enjoy the dip. I’ll be in the living room, Shiro will come fetch you when it’s time to go to bed, for real this time.” The kid didn’t answer, but Sendak saw them dive right back underwater without wasting a second. They might have to invest in a pool.
Mornings with kids were hard, Sendak discovered. Before, on weekends they would laze around and cuddle, sometimes even going a little farther if they were in the mood. On weekdays, Sendak would wake up and prepare breakfast and some coffee for Shiro, then he would get ready, kiss his sleepy lover and walk to the nearest station to go to work. But now that they had kids, mornings weren’t peaceful. At all .
On weekdays - except on Wednesdays where none of them had school and Sendak could enjoy a little bit of silence -, he was constantly running. He had learned, in three weeks, that he had to wake up a few minutes early if he wanted to be able to do everything.
So those mornings he woke up, earlier than usual - a real tragedy -, took a shower and got ready. Then he woke up the kids, giving them a little time to get up before they had to get ready. It gave him the few minutes he needed to put breakfast on the table: a few fruits, orange juice, hot chocolate, some yogurts or cereals, twice a week toasts with whatever the kids wanted to add on top. What wasn’t eaten was put in the fridge or would be Shiro’s breakfast when he would wake up later. The children never complained about the food, already more used to Earth than Sendak would ever be.
Once breakfast was over, it was time to clean up and dress up. While Kolak and Riel were brushing their teeth, cleaning their face and putting their clothes on by themselves, Sendak had to help Nor. He knew the child could do it by himself, but Sendak let him do so once and they were almost late (Shiro scolded him later for letting the boy go to school with his clothes inside out).
Then everyone took their bag and their lunch, kindly cooked by Sendak the night before, double-checked they all had what they needed for the day and once they were dressed up to go outside, they walked to the station. Riel and Kolak were walking hand-in-hand in front of Sendak but still close enough he could grab them by their joined hands if needed. Nor was in his arm, napping most of the time, sometimes playing with Sendak’s fur or looking around. The walk to the station wasn’t long and they got on the train pretty easily. People usually let Riel and Kolak sit or it would be difficult for them to stay up in the crowded train. It was always a hassle to get out, though, and they usually ended up all three in Sendak’s arms so he didn't lose one. They walked to kindergarten and school easily after that, the streets less crowded. When they all were taken care of, Sendak sent a good morning text to Shiro to tell him everyone had made it in time and walked to his workplace.
However, those mornings weren’t the worst. Sendak simply added a few things to his to-do list. No, what Sendak had a hard time with were the mornings on the weekends. They should be relaxing and quiet, days he could sleep in and not worry about anything. They weren’t anymore.
“Do you think they are still sleeping?” a small voice whispered behind their door.
“I don't know.” another voice answered, the whisper too loud to even be called a whisper. Who taught those kids how to whisper, damn it.
“I'm hungry…” the last voice complained. But it was way too early to get up, they could wait another hour or two, Sendak decided. And the voices stopped, his prayers answered. He was already falling back into the arms of Morpheus.
“Hey, stop whispering and come in.” Why did everything he enjoyed had to be disturbed. Sendak opened an eye and glared at Shiro who kissed him on the nose as an answer. Before he could catch another kiss, however, the door to their bedroom opened and hurried footsteps echoed against the floor. The bed creaked when three bodies climbed on it.
“Hi, you three.” Shiro scouted away from Sendak and opened his arms. Nor jumped into Shiro’s arms and hugged him so tightly Sendak’s neck hurt just looking at it.
A weight fell on Sendak’s back and settled there, body stretched across his back so the body could melt against the soft fur. “‘Morning,” a sleepy voice said and the breathing became slow again as Riel fell asleep on top of Sendak.
The man groaned but didn't move, too tired to push the kid off him. He almost went back to sleep until he could feel someone watching him. He opened his eyes to see Kolak, sitting on his knees and looking at Sendak until he noticed he had been seen. He looked away immediately, his small hands going to cover his ears as if he was threatened and afraid.
Sendak moved the hand he had on Shiro’s stomach and put it on Kolak’s head. “Come here.” Riel grumbled when he shifted but he ignored it. Instead, Sendak pulled Kolak towards him and rubbed their head together, careful and gentle.
In three weeks, Shiro and Sendak had started to find out the little things the kids had been missing, away from any parents, from people who care about them. Riel was delighted to spend some time in water and play with someone in the bath, Nor was loving being pampered and held high in the sky, and Kolak had missed all the little touches Galrans usually do between them and their loved ones. Just like the head rub, which was something mate or parents do to show their affection.
The small Galran purred, happy and content with the small gesture. Sendak let go, his own head falling against the pillow. He watched Shiro pet Kolak behind the ear before the boy settled between them to sleep some more.
Soon enough, silence fell on the room. Sendak looked at his lover, cuddling with the younger ones next to him. He felt Riel occasionally moving on his back, obviously enjoying the fur he was sleeping on.
Sendak sighed. Maybe he could fall back asleep. Maybe he won’t. Maybe he didn’t want to anymore, because it would mean acknowledging those mornings are quite enjoyable, far from being the worst, that they weren’t that hard actually.
Eventually, he fell back asleep.
“I talked to Lance this morning and he told me about his trip to the Mountains with his family. They were in a lovely house next to a lake. So I talked with Sendak and if you behaved, we could go there this summer.” Shiro smiled at Riel who was looking at him with bright eyes, towel forgotten on the bathroom’s floor. They were visibly over-excited.
Shiro had been thinking about it for a month now. Blaytz had told him his species was indeed very fond of water and could feel depressed if they were separated from it for a long time. He had also said they usually preferred freshwater like lakes and rivers because they didn't have saltwater on their planet. And Shiro didn't try the sea with Riel yet, but they went to the pool once and the child hadn't spent as good of a time as Shiro expected.
“And I can swim in the lake?” Riel put their hands on Shiro’s arm where skin met metal, their palms still wet from the bath they had taken
“Hmhm, but only if you behaved, am I clear?” He looked at the child in the eyes, to make sure they knew he was serious, and then turned their attention to Nor still in the bathtub. He put his hand on his forehead, just above his eyes, and pushed Nor’s head slightly backward so he could wash the shampoo in his hair.
Riel hummed next to him. “I'll be good!”
Shiro lifted Nor out of the bathtub and put him on the ground, a warm towel around his small body. “Great, that's what I wanted to hear. Could you help dry your brother for me, please? I’m gonna fetch Kolak.” The child nodded, ready to show to his father he could be a really good kid.
“Kolak!” Shiro called. “It's time for your bath!”
No answer.
“Kolak? I know you are not fond of them but you need to take one.”
No answer.
Shiro frowned. “He better not be hiding. Sendak, where is Kolak?”
Nothing.
Now that was worrying. Shiro knew they were still in the house, he could smell them, they had strong scents if they didn't shower regularly. But what if something bad happened?
“Sendak?” Shiro looked in the living room, where he thought they would be, but they weren’t. So he went to the kitchen, maybe they were eating.
Oh, and here they were.
“Sendak! Here yo- What are you doing?” Sendak lifted his head and turned his face towards Shiro, tongue hanging from his mouth. The expression on his lover’s face was one of shock and disgust.
“Cleaning. What do you think I could be doing?”
“Wh- Cleaning? You're licking Kolak! That's not cleaning!” Shiro stomped furiously towards the Galrans and took Kolak off the counter and into his own arms. The kid seemed half-asleep, far from being alert and scared.
Sendak, on the other hand, wasn’t pleased. He stood from his chair, arms crossed. “Yes, it is. A lot of species on this Earth do it as well.”
“You mean, cats? Cats don't take bath, they- they are animals! It's still not cleaning, it's dirty!”
“That's what you call it.” He couldn’t bear the look of disgust on Shiro’s face. Surprise, he could have dealt with it. Not repulsion. “I don't understand why you like it so much when I do it to you but I can't do it to Kolak.”
“Wh- When did you? You mean when you lick me after we have done it? Is that what it is?” He was completely taken aback. “I- I just thought it was your thing, that you did it because you liked it. Not- Not because your instincts kicked in and told you to clean me!”
Shiro shook his head. “Oh my god.” He pulled a chair towards himself and sat, it was too much for him. “Why didn't you just told me?” He sighed. Kolak was waking up in his arm with all the agitation around him. “Listen, you can't just keep doing this. He has to take a bath. I mean, even if you don't like it so much, you take showers. And Kolak should do it as well.”
Sendak, despite how he had changed from his awful self back in college, was still stubborn. He couldn’t see what was wrong. Never in his childhood had he taken a bath, his mother always cleaned him until he grew old enough to be able to do it himself.
Of course, his peoples took showers as well, but it wasn’t a requirement, they could do without one. Sendak started taking showers regularly only when he came down on Earth. It wasn’t even because he wanted to, he just had to . There was some part he couldn’t reach by himself and he wasn’t going to ask the human next door to groom one another, their tongues are too weird.
“Anyway, I’ll give him a bath for now. But that talk isn’t over.” He gave Sendak a tired look and left.
They were back in a bathroom, not theirs though.
Riel and Nor had been left with Lance, who was ecstatic to look after them, and Hunk for two nights. Once a month, Sendak and Shiro would take some time to go somewhere with only one of the kids, leaving the other two to family members or friends (who were, by now, considered family as well). It was good for bonding and they could learn more about the children individually.
This weekend, they went to a resort next to a big city up North. There were a zoo and a fair nor far from where they stayed, which could be fun.
For now, however, they were relaxing in their room. It was modern and spacious, big enough for three fully grown Yupper. Needless to say, the bathtub was really large. And because Shiro was still somewhat annoyed at Sendak for all the grooming and shower talk they had a few days prior, he decided the three of them would take a bath. Together .
Sendak wasn’t entirely pleased with the idea but he agreed, the bath was round and there was no way they would be cramped in there. Maybe they would have a good time, even.
His lover found himself pressed against Sendak's chest but the Galran wasn’t going to refuse some cuddling. Kolak was sitting before them, playing in the water with some toys they had taken with them. He was really quiet, not disturbing anyone, enjoying himself despite his unwillingness to be in water at first. It had been forgotten the moment Shiro started playing with him.
Said Shiro looked exhausted, a deep sigh living his lips as he leaned against Sendak. He stayed quiet for awhile, enjoying the warm contact and soft fur against his back. He nuzzled Sendak’s chin with his head.
“It's nice. We never took a bath together before.” Sendak stayed quiet about how they always had human size bathtubs only. Instead, he rubbed his face against Shiro’s and hummed. Indeed, it was really nice.
However, all nice things come to an end. This one wasn’t an exception.
Kolak started fidgeting, trying to scratch his nose without letting go of the toys. Eventually, he sneezed, his head lowering suddenly and dangerously towards the water. He ended up drowning.
“Oh my god.” Shiro grabbed him almost immediately and lifted the boy out of the water. “Kolak, are you okay?”
The boy coughed a few times, more surprised than panicked or hurt with what just happened. They all waited until the child opened his eyes, looking around for his toys that he had eventually dropped, then nodded.
“Well, I think it's enough for today. We don't want you to get sick.” He reluctantly got out of the water and grabbed two towels. He used the first one to dry himself and hang it around his waist, then he used the second one for Kolak, ruffling the fur and making the child laugh quietly. Sendak followed them shortly after, not really enjoying being alone in a bath.
Once they were all dry, Shiro pushed them both toward the room and the bed. He took the hairdryer and plucked it next to their bed. “Sendak, come here.” He tapped in front of him, a bright smile on his face.
The Galran complied and sat cross-legged. They often did this when they started dating, Shiro thought he would catch a cold if he didn’t dry his fur correctly like humans do if they go out with damp hair. It took a few weeks before Sendak told him Galrans have such a strong immune system that they simply can’t catch a cold. The hot air against his fur was a pleasant feeling.
“I love when you’re fluffy.” Shiro kissed Sendak’s cheek. “Okay now, Kolak’s turn.” The child crawled on Shiro’s laps at his name, happy to be taken care of.
Sendak rolled on his side and watched the two of them with a fond smile. Shiro really knew how to take care of children, he really had it in him. In comparison, Sendak had a hard time but that was probably due to his personality.
“I noticed something.” Shiro started, turning the hair-dryer off. “Kolak is a gentle and quiet kid with everyone but when he is with you, he is wary. And when you take care of him, he is even more submissive, he doesn’t move like he sometimes does with me. And it’s the same when he is with Keith. Why?”
Sendak looked up. “Secondary gender. Kolak will most certainly present as omega. And I am an alpha. Your friend’s too.” Kolak leaned against Shiro’s chest. “Fortunately, society has changed today but during the Empire, omegas were servants or prostitutes. If they didn’t submit to an Alpha, they were killed - if they were lucky. There’s even a myth that says that some male omegas could once bear children, which could explain their heat. It could explain why he is so submissive, his instinct is telling him to.
But it could also be something else. We don’t know what happened before he was sent to the orphanage. Maybe he had an omega mother and he saw her being beaten for not obeying. We just have to show him he is safe now.”
He reached for the child, now asleep in Shiro’s arms, and carefully pat his head. “It’s gonna be okay.”
“So, who’s winning?” Shiro came back from the house with drinks and a cake fresh out of the oven - which Sendak baked, thank God. The kids were playing in the garden with Sendak, it seemed to be dodgeball - but he wasn’t sure.
“We are winning!” Riel shouted, running towards the small table where Shiro put the afternoon snack. “Papa is too tall, he can’t stop us!”
“You’re lucky you have your brothers in your team, yeah. They are small and quick, it’s harder for me.” Sendak plopped on a chair and exhaled loudly, it was tiring to play with three kids.
“Good job!” He gave each of them a piece of cake. “You deserved a nice break then. And once you’re done, you all need to clean up and get ready. It’s grandma’s birthday today and we are invited for dinner.”
They finished quickly and Riel and Kolak hurried inside, excited to see their grandmother (and spend some time with her dogs). However, Nor stayed at the table. He waited until his siblings were out of sight and then leaned towards his dads. He whispered. “More cake, please.”
“You sure are hungry today.” Sendak cut a smaller piece and gave him. The boy did run a whole lot today, his small body needed it. He devoured it in a few seconds. “Calm down, it’s not going to fly away. Here, drink this.” He put a glass of juice between Nor’s fingers. “Be careful.”
“Yeah, thanks, papa.” He drunk it, slowly this time. Once he was done, he left the table and hurried inside like his siblings did, leaving Shiro and Sendak to themselves. It was sunny and warm, the start of a hot summer, and neither of them was ready to move just yet.
Sendak eventually broke the silence.
“It was a good decision.”
Shiro perked up, brows raised. “What is?”
A sigh. “This.” Sendak made a vague gesture towards the house. He took Shiro’s hand in his and looked right in his lover’s eyes. Shiro could see his cheeks had turned a little bit darker under the fur. “ Our family .” And he looked away, embarrassed. “I’m lucky to have you. And to have them now, as well.”
“Aw.” Shiro laughed lightly, he wouldn’t have taken Sendak for such a sentimental. It was also unexpected, and really nice to hear. So he got up and sat on Sendak’s laps. He put his hands on his partner’s cheeks and looked him in the eyes, a fond smile on his lips. “I’m lucky to have you too. I don’t know what I would have done if you hadn’t been here when I got injured.” He kissed his nose and sighed happily.
“I love you.” He said it in a single breath, almost sure his heart would come out of his chest. The smile on Shiro’s face grew wider, brighter.
“I love you too, Sendak.”