A/N: Sorry it took so long to update, now that I have spring break I'll be spewing out the stories!

Need

"And you will need to report back here every other day for therapy. We don't know if it will do any good but there is a slim possibility that your legs will completely recover." The kindly, nurse who was taking care of Leon paused as she looked at the young man. He was sitting up in his bed and staring out the window, ice blue eyes blank and emotionless. "Mr. Orcot have you heard a word I've said?"

Leon slowly turned his head to face the nurse and whispered a soft, "No." Ever since he had woken up, he had been very unresponsive and distant to everyone through no fault of his own; his mind simply refused to focus.

The nurse sighed and smiled softly. "Tis okay. I'll just tell the Count when he arrives to take you home." Leon nodded and turned to look back out the window, watching a couple of guys play basketball in wheelchairs. The Detective didn't hear Count D come into his small room and jumped slightly when the Count tapped him on the shoulder.

"Hello Leon, I didn't mean to startle you." Leon looked up into mismatched eyes with a blank stare, mind barely registering that D was here to take him home. The Count inwardly sighed as Leon's gaze turned back outside, his heart aching as he saw the Detective's broken spirit. "Are you ready to leave, my dearest Detective?"

The endearment temporarily broke through the haze surrounding Leon's mind, blue eyes looking up expectantly at the Count with an unclear emotion in their depths. D smiled as Leon whispered, "Yes" in a gravely voice, leaning down to lift Leon's light frame from the bed with strength that belied his looks. Leon whimpered quietly as a strain was placed on his slow-healing thighs, which ached even through the pain medication he was currently taking.

D readjusted his hold on the blonde and whispered soothingly to him, carrying him out into the hallway where a wheelchair was waiting. The Count lowered Leon down gently so as to not jar his injuries, wheeling him outside to a waiting taxi cab. After a few minutes the pair was on their way back to the Pet Shop, Leon still quiet beside the increasingly worried Count. Small talk was futile and D started to wonder if he had brought back a different man other than the loud, brash Detective he knew and loved.

The kami breathed a sigh of relief when they turned onto the street that the Pet Shop was on, hoping that seeing "home" would lighten the Detective's mood a little. Leon curled up in the Count's arms as he carried him down the shop's steps from the taxi, head resting against a red and gold dragon and the steady thump of D's heart.

The front door flew open and Chris looked at the pair with a big smile on his face, excited to have his big brother home at last. "Leon we made you a present! Come in and see!" Chris ran into the back of the pet shop to retrieve the gift as D arranged Leon gently on the couch, wrapping a cover around his shoulders for warmth. On impulse, D pressed naturally red lips lightly to the Detective's forehead, caressing the side of his face as he drew back.

"I hope you get well soon Leon, I miss you more than words can explain." Much to Count D's chagrin, the human's expression remained as it was before, blank and completely devoid of life.

"Here it is Leon, we decorated it for you!" Chris wheeled out a deep blue wheelchair with "Leon" printed on the back of it in silver, obviously done in a child's hand. The wheels, however, were undoubtedly the Count's handiwork. A soft paper covering had been put over the prongs of the wheels, and two sparring dragons were painted on them; one gold and one black. "Do you like it?"

Leon's eyes hardened in fury, outraged that they had bought him something he considered weak. Chris's blue eyes widened as his brother rained down curses upon his and the Count's head, fists clenching so tight that his nails drew blood. Chris ran out of the room crying silently as Leon turned his wrath directly onto Count D, eyes expressing an emotion akin to hatred.

The sound of a loud slap resounded in the pet shop, blue eyes watering from the sting on his cheek. The Count's mismatched eyes bore a disgusted look down on the Detective and for the first time around the Count, Leon feared for his life.

"How dare you do such a thing to that boy, your own brother at that. He worked on that wheelchair for goodness knows how long yet you through it in his face. I know that you went through something terribly dramatic that may possibly change your lifestyle permanently but that is no excuse to abuse those who want to help you because they love you. I must say I expected better of you Detective Orcot." Throughout his speech, Count D's voice remained perfectly calm; that scared Leon more than anything.

With one last reproaching glare the Count walked out of the room to find Chris, hoping that Leon would think about what he said.

Tet-chan was awoken from his nap by small hands clutching onto his torso, a golden head pressed against his chest. Wordlessly he held the boy in a strong embrace, whispering soothing words into his ear as he stroked blonde hair. As Chris's tears stopped flowing he asked what was wrong, not too surprised when he heard it was Leon. Lately he had been the cause of all the boy's grief.

Chris closed his eyes as slender fingers raked gently through his hair, his soul at ease within the Totetsu's arms. The boy looked up into a pair of brown eyes rimmed with gold and smiled, his hands reaching up to touch Tetsu's face. On a whim Tet-chan placed a chaste kiss on Chris's lips, pulling his body towards him as the youth wrapped arms around the teenage Totetsu's neck. The pair parted a few minutes later, both of their faces flushed from the jolt of electricity that had run through them when their lips had met in an innocent kiss.

Count D had witnessed the event from the door and smiled to himself, happy that they both had each other. He gently knocked on the door and came in a few seconds later, giving the pair time to regain their composure. With a smile he sat on the edge of Chris's bed, gesturing to the boy to sit in his lap.

"Chris, you must forgive your brother. He really isn't himself." D couldn't help the sad tremor that crept into his voice. "I-I'm sure he will get better soon."

"So…he didn't like the gift?" Count D shook his head softly, explaining to Chris that Leon probably hadn't realized that he could be crippled the rest of his life until he saw the wheelchair. It just drove home a fact that he didn't want to acknowledge. The twelve year old nodded slowly, hoping that D could help his brother get back to his old self.

The Kami, the youth, and the Totetsu all sat huddled next to each other with their thoughts on the lost man lying on the sofa, hoping that he would one day become the Leon they once knew.

I seriously hated this chapter, I think it blows mighty Beanz. But I hope you guys like it. Hopefully the next one will be better/longer. Till next time!

-Katty D.