Little Bird

VIII

"Why hasn't Papa woken up?"

Lila sniffled from her spot in bed, and Ryan sucked his thumb in his bassinet beside me.
I sighed as I hugged Lila, she married her face in my chest as she clung to my shirt.

"He's really tired, and his body needs all the energy it can get to heal properly, that's why he has an IV, it puts in medicine and fluids to keep him strong, and he has that thing in his nose, it's called a nasal cannula, it pushes oxygen into him so his body keeps working, okay? He... He just needs time"

I told her, she nodded as I held her and soon we fell asleep, her on my chest the whole time.

It had already been three days, he'd had a blood transfusion, and surgery to not only right his clavicle but his rib also, his rib slowed the bullet down enough to not go straight through his lung, and it stopped short of exiting, and possibly killing him, his bruises will stay for a while, at least he does look as pale.

Now day five, Lila was in the school room and I was holding Ryan who would cry if anyone else held him.
Heading toward Corbin's room I noticed a nurse heading the same way with a tray of food, Rossi exits his room with a grin.

"Matteo, guess who is awake"

My eyes widen as I run the short distance, when I entered the room I found a droopy-eyed Corbin sitting up in bed.

"Corbin"

I whispered, his eyes met mine, and he smiled. Quickly I moved closer, hugging him gently as I hid my face against his neck.
Ryan cooed and I felt him wiggle in my other arm, then Corbin had him and he settled down.

"Russi, go get Lila"

"On it"

"He needs to eat, can you make sure he finishes?"

The woman asked before leaving, Corbin kissed Ryan on the temple and I couldn't help it, leaning in I pressed my lips to his.
His hand slid to the back of my head, gripping my hair lightly as he returned the kiss.

"You scared the hell out of me, and then you spoke, I thought you couldn't?"

He shook his head, tapping his mouth before tapping his head.

"your brain doesn't let you? Never mind, you took out ten men, on your own, that's insane, you were stabbed and shot, which is nothing compared to what you did to them, but shit"

He smacked my chest before gesturing to Ryan, I gave a sheepish grin before apologizing.
I was halfway done feeding him when Lila entered, she jumped onto the bed and hugged Corbin.

"PAPA! You finally finished your sleep!"

He moved his hand, signing yes to the joyful little girl who clung to him.
My chest ached as I saw him grimace with pain, yet he let her cling to him.

"Lila, Papa is still hurt, so we have to pamper him, how about you go finish classes, and then get to work on some art for him?"

I suggested, she agreed and kissed his cheek before running off.
He gave a silent sigh, his shoulders slumping as he leaned back, Ryan peacefully asleep in his arm.

"I did some research on crows... And people that are crow shifters"

I cleared my throat, he peeked one eye open to stare at me.

"Stand-offish to outsiders, cautious of new things, but fiercely loyal and protective of family, smarter than almost every other bird species, hell, as smart as the Orangutang, which has the highest IQ, they have been documented to not only fight larger animals to protect their families and selves but also attack just to bully or taunt, which I see as a form of protection, bully them before they bully you, show you aren't to be fucked with"

I stated, though I got a small stab with a plastic fork.

"Crow shifters are usually born of fiercely loyal families, parents not necessarily being crows or even bird shifters themselves, but in rare cases"

I paused, his eye slipped shut, and I could see him tense.

"A child that is a late bloomer, has experienced hardship, of all and any form, and only craves that which a crow is known for, that protective tight not family, a caring home, does that child shift into this beautiful dark bird... But no cases have been documented of one being mute, only if the vocal cords are damaged, but yours have not... This means you have lived through more than your body tells us, more than we... More than I will ever know, even know about the PTSD you have, we still only know what's happened on the surface"

He opened his eyes, they were wet, and I held my breath.

"Corbin, to hear you speak... I find myself the luckiest man on earth, god could have spoken to me and I wouldn't count myself this lucky, to be trusted, to know you feel safe with me, safe enough that your mind is at ease and would allow you to speak, even if once a year, I can confidently say you are the strongest, smartest man I've met"

"I second that"

Gio said as he stepped in, following him was Rossi and my Father.

"Same here kid"

"Little Bird, though I first thought you were stupid to get so hurt... I commend you, and I thank you, you protected our families, and our home, as you would your own, risking life and limb, we owe you a great debt"

I wiped his cheeks, my ears burning and my throat thick from being heard by my father and two adoptive uncles.
Corbin smiled, a soft croon leaving him.
We all understood him, Gio and Rossi both gave him gentle pats on the head while my Father kissed his temple.

"Toughest man I've met, you even cracked my son, shaping him into a better man, he honestly would have left more hurt if it wasn't for his newfound dedication to training, possibly because he's grown attached to a certain little family and wants to protect them like the good little pup he is"

"Pa! What the fuck-"

The plastic prongs in my throat stopped me, a light glare coming from Corbin.

"Tsk tsk, cursing when a child is around, I guess you still have some work to do, don't you Little Bird?"

"He will have him trained to perfection soon enough"

"Yep, his training might make Mama Maria jealous, Boss, she may ask him for tips"

I stuck my tongue out at him, he shivered before grabbing my tongue.

"Watch it, boy, you will never be too grown or too big for me to bend you over my knee like a bratty child"

"Rude, I'm not a kid anymore, and don't threaten people with that so casually, use that on the wrong person and you might end up scarred... Mentally"

Corbin snickered, I grinned happily since I made him laugh.
My father shook his head with a sigh, then left us alone.

(what did you think?)