A/N: Hello again and welcome to the newest chapter of the day! I hope you all delight in reading this chapter, please feel free to leave a review, and know I am greatly honoured by all the followers I have come to find with this story! Lord knows I don't deserve them.

Enjoy!

(Mello P.O.V)

The hospital wasn't far from us and we made it there in no time flat. However, we didn't get to see Light right away though, since we didn't share the same name as him. It was long past nightfall before someone actually allowed us any entrance, but I was more than angry that they didn't let us in sooner.

It was a doctor that found us and spoke with L. "Excuse me, would you be Ryuzaki?" After L confirmed this, "Light is in room six. He's been asking for you."

"What about us?" Matt said angrily. "We're his kids!"

The doctor nodded. "You three may come as well, but I'll have to ask that you don't stress him out in any way. He needs rest after his surgery."

We agreed and began to follow the doctor to Light's room. Matt and Near were right up front of me and L, me wanting to stay by the detective's side for comfort. I knew L was worried for Light, and I was as well, but in times like this it was best to stay calm. Light had done so with us, so we should do the same. The less he worried about us, the better, and the best way to keep him from worrying about us was to remain calm and be there for him.

However, it would seem Matt had gotten wrong idea about my demeanor. He'd send angry glances my way when I tried to calm down Near and tell him everything was fine. I don't know that he understood how fearful I really was at the moment. I didn't want to lose Light any more than he did, and I'd be damned if I let that mugger get away with knifing him, but it was best that Light think everything would be fine so he could rest easier. Maybe I came off as not caring, but I probably cared more than anyone else at the moment.

The doctor showed us into room six and there he was, sitting up and looking more than tired of being poked and prodded by the nurses. He didn't look to be in much pain, but if I knew Light he was hiding most of it to show he could be stronger than the pain.

He looked towards the door and instantly smiled. "Finally, some company!"

Near and Matt ran in and were about to hug the brunette when they realized he might be in pain. However, Light pulled them into a hug anyways and the two hugged him back.

I noticed, although he tried to hide his pain, he was breathing abnormally and had a slight strain in his voice. Other than that, he looked almost normal.

L walked in and hugged Light as well. "I was so worried for you."

"Don't be. I'm fine, I barely lost any blood." He chuckled a bit, holding his side as he sat up a bit more. "The muggers in Japan would usually run when I stood my ground. I'm surprised one of them pulled a knife on me. Two of 'em ran off when I threatened them. That man had guts."

"Stop it, Light." L said as he pulled away a bit. "You know what happened to you was wrong, and I'll do anything I can to find them."

"Oh lord, Ryuzaki, can't you wait until I'm home to start planning on how you can find them?"

"Light…"

"I mean it. I might be in the hospital for a few more days, maybe a week, and the boys need you. We need at least one calm person to take care of them."

"You know me, Light. I told you before, no one hurts my family or loved ones without me getting involved. I'm sorry, but I'm going to find this degenerate and make sure he pays for the crime he committed."

Light sighed, pinching his brow.

I pulled on L's sleeve and caught his attention. "Ryuzaki, the doctor told us not to cause him stress. Talking to him this way isn't going to help him get better."

L paused for a bit, then sighed. "You are… correct, Mello." He turned to Light. "I'm sorry, Light. You are also correct and I promise not to get involved in finding this man until after you're out of the hospital."

This time, Light looked at me. "Actually, Ryuzaki, if you're committed to finding the man who knifed me, I suggest then letting Mello take charge of himself and the others."

Matt scoffed. "What, him? He's only fifteen, he can't do much."

Near shrugged though. "But he is older than us, and it wouldn't be for long."

I blinked. "Am I really being given a choice here?" I asked somewhat sarcastically.

Light finally pulled me into a hug. "Mello, I can tell you're afraid for what happened to me." He whispered. "But I can also tell you're trying to look calm for the three of them so they won't worry as much. I thank you for that, and I need you to continue to show them there's nothing to worry about. I don't know how long I'll be here, and I know L can't hold out on looking for the man who assaulted me for very long. All I ask is that you be the adult for a while so I can heal. I won't uneasy knowing you're taking care of everything."

I felt a tear roll down my cheek. "Okay, Light. I'll do it for you."

He kissed my head then. "Thank you. You're a good kid."

I smiled happily and tightened my hug a bit. It was nice to know Light trusted me enough to keep things in order for a few days while he was resting.

The doctor came in once again. "I'm sorry to tell you that visiting hours are over for the day. You may come back tomorrow if you wish.

L nodded to the doctor then turned to Light, giving him another hug.

"We'll see you tomorrow, Light. We love you."

Matt and Near joined in, and once they were done I hugged him as well. Promising I'd do a good job.

It wasn't long before we were out of the room and outside the hospital.

Near looked at L. "When do we start looking for that bastard!?"

I stepped in immediately. "L will start right away, but you aren't going to help."

"Oh," Matt started up. "So you're gonna command us now? Look, just because Light put you in charge, doesn't mean…"

"He put me in charge, yes, but I won't have my twelve year old brother looking for someone when he has better things to do with his time." I interrupted. "Light would say the same thing, and you know it."

"That's another thing!" Matt started yelling. "Why is it that you show absolutely no emotion when someone who loves and cares for you is sitting in a hospital bed?! Light needs love and support, and you didn't even offer to hug him the moment you entered the room! You just stood there! Not one word from you!"

He finally stopped ranting and I took a breath.

"Did it ever occur to you that I was afraid to touch him? That I was afraid that one bad move would cost me his life? Did that thought ever float into your head, or did you truly believe I was being selfish and uncaring?" I paused, watching his face contort from anger into sorrow. "And the reason I didn't say anything, is because the doctors told us not to put any stress on him, and so saying nothing was better than saying a possible stress-induced sentence. If you hadn't noticed, L caused more than enough stress after he announced his mission to find and bring justice to Lights attacker. I even had to step in to stop him from going any further. So don't look at me and say I don't care about Light, because out of all of you, I care for him the most. And if I had my way, I'd find that bastard that knifed him, slice off his ear and shove it down his throat so he could be deafened by his own screams."

The three males before me all looked terrified.

They should be.

However much L hated to see his loved ones in danger, I hated it by a tenfold.

Matt blinked a few times. "Mel… I'm… I'm sorry, I…"

"Whatever, Matt." I growled, getting into the car. "Let's just go home and sleep. We have classes in the morning."

The three calmed down a bit and joined me in the car. Watari, as he began driving asked about Light to Matt and Near.

While they answered, L leaned in to speak with me.

"I think I might just have you work on the case with me. You seem more than angry at what happened to Light."

I scoffed. "I have to look out for Matt and Near first. When Light's up and walking, and you haven't found him yet, I'll join you. If you find him before he's up and waking, throw a few punches from me."

With that, the detective stopped speaking. Maybe he was too afraid to. With the amount of anger I was holding in… hell, even I was afraid of me at this point.