Something You Can't Give Back

It was nearing 6 o 'clock in the morning and Izumo was so past his limits that not even cigarettes and alcohol could soothe him anymore. He was beyond the stage of wanting to rip all of his hair out by the roots in frustration and just wanted to sleep, deeply, in a quiet place. He really just wanted to be someplace far, far away from a surprisingly subdued and bleary-eyed Tatara and a somewhat cantankerous and sleep deprived Mikoto.

Izumo had known from the start that keeping the infant around was going to be nothing short of troublesome. But he'd never imagined that the trouble would start so soon. The infant that had been dumped on HOMRA's doorstep had been rather happy and easygoing, at least until he got hungry and in turn very angry and very vocal when the three confused males didn't immediately tend to his needs.

Everything went downhill faster than an Alpine skier with rockets strapped to their skis after that. The three bachelors quickly discovered that the inconsiderate, MIA mother didn't leave them any necessary baby supplies. They were left only with an unsigned note taped to the car seat the infant arrived in, a simple blanket and a soft toy in the form of an orange lion. There were no diapers, wipes, bottles or any baby formula.

Most importantly, there was no guidebook for dummies such as them.

They quickly found out that little Taiki had inherited his father's bad temper, and not even Tatara could soothe the wrath of the hungry little lion cub. All three of them tried, in various highly unconventional ways, to get the infant to calm down, but their efforts were all in vain. Miraculously enough, Anna slept peacefully through the whole night long ordeal; but she was the only one so lucky.

Taiki cried, loudly, for almost thirty whole minutes before it finally dawned on Izumo that the four of them needed to get out of the bar and find a store with baby supplies, and some books. Because if they were going to keep Taiki even remotely happy and healthy then they really needed some sort of a guide.

Their impromptu trip into town was... interesting to say the least.

The three adult males certainly garnered some baffled and even some nasty looks from all bystanders. Izumo was sure that a couple of the people they passed wanted to call the authorities on them on suspicion of kidnapping, but Mikoto's chilling glare made them turn away and quickly scurry off. The rest of their cringe worthy adventure more-or-less went the same.

It wasn't until their fourth stop, the first three choices having been unsuccessful, that they managed to get lucky. The store, unbeknownst to them at the time, had everything that they needed. However, none of them knew exactly what they needed or how much, and all of the store clerks mysteriously disappeared when Izumo looked for them.

Thankfully, Tatara's cutely confused expression coupled with the crying, squirming infant in his arms finally managed to lure in one sympathetic, not to mention courageous, female helper. She was a near literal godsend for the three males who were so out of their depth that it bordered on pathetic. The kind woman had enough experience with children, three of her own – all boys, to set them up with the important supplies for the next two months, plenty of helpful books included.

Izumo was so relieved that he nearly kissed her right then and there out of gratitude. He refrained, barely. But he had to admit that her husband was a damn lucky man to have such a kind and beautiful woman like her as his wife. She really was a beauty, voluptuous too.

The three adults sluggishly made their way back to the bar, all of them ready to sleep but knowing that their long night was far from over. Mikoto took his turn holding Taiki because Tatara was carrying the majority of the bags and Izumo was studiously flipping through the books they'd just bought. Izumo had a feeling that he was going to have to take on the responsible 'mothering' role where Taiki was concerned. Tatara was more like a playmate for the infant, and Mikoto was, well... Mikoto. That was more than enough of an explanation on that matter.

"You're holding him wrong, Mikoto. Prop his head up more with your elbow so he doesn't choke." Izumo received a blank yet piercing amber stare for his 'words of wisdom', but Mikoto did as suggested and finally, finally Taiki's cries quieted. The little lion cub now cooed happily around the nipple of the bottle, all traces of his previous anger and tears gone.

Izumo gave a deep, relieved sigh and slumped in his seat already half-asleep. Tatara just smiled tiredly relaxing into the couch next to the infant and his father, quite pleased that things had ended so well and because of the wholly parental way that King was currently looking at and treating his little cub, even though they'd just met. The first night had been rough to be sure, but Tatara knew that things could only get better from here on out.