Author's Notes; Rich Family AU. Plot. Some fluff. Some Shounen Ai. Drama. Zero gets a reminder of how the outside world really sees him. Please enjoy..
Six weeks passed. Zero's ankle was healed and he was moving around way more than when he arrived at the mansion. Light had finished repairs on Zero's armor and was on his way to return it when he got a call from Dr. Cain one morning.
Dr. Cain had managed to get in touch with the orphanage Zero had been abandon at by his father. The orphanage had Zero written off as missing and had put up posters showing that he was missing, but those posters were nowhere to be seen. Light was puzzled at this news. "Curious. Maybe it was the work of his gang or another group." Dr. Cain wasn't sure. "It seems like it would be. I don't know. How's his ankle? Is he able to get around?" Light nodded. "Oh yes. He follows Xavier everywhere. Xavier is trying to work with him on reversing that old kleptomania. He seems to be doing ok about it. They communicate through writing and just from Zero's writing, I can tell that boy is sharp. He's gone as far as questioning capitalism, seeing it as useless and greedy." Dr. Cain chuckled. "Well, he's not wrong. It can certainly be corrupting. Were you able to outfit his armor with anything that could provide verbal speech from him? His vocal cords were in good condition, though they might be paralyzed. We call this Dysarthria." Light paused. "Good to know. Well, I did some tinkering with a device I made implanted into the helmet to read his brain waves and produce speech based on what his voice should have sounded like. It will hook gently to his neck in the form of a collar, but we'll only know if it works once I have given him his armor back." Dr. Cain agreed. "I'd like to see the results of your work personally." Light chuckled. "Xavier and Zero are at the market right now. Xavier said something about wanting Zero as a personal bodyguard. That would leave me with Mr. Hellmuth." Dr. Cain chuckled too. "Considering what we saw of him before, Zero would be a powerful ally. I can't say I blame X." Light agreed. "By the way, can you get some more info on that orphanage?" Dr. Cain grinned. "Are you looking to adopt? You have 3 plus maids, the bodyguard, and the mansion itself. You're taking on an awful lot, Thomas." Light knew that. "Of course. Zero deserves tender care too though."
In the town, X and Zero walked side by side. Zero was walking much better than he had before. X was happy to see Zero in much better condition, no longer on the verge of death. He had been working with Zero on stopping his old thieving ways. It was getting so that only a trace of an urge to steal is all he felt, never enough to act on and carry out. X was proud of him and his progress, though he still didn't know what exactly to do about Zero's fighting. Zero hadn't been able to fight since the day he saved X from the greedy mobster, leaving X no means to work with him.
In the market, the former thug was hit with a bitter reminder of how the world really saw him. Fruit and vegetable vendors shouted and threw their produce at him. "Get lost, thief!", "Filthy thug!", and "Begone, you little ragamuffin!" were among the insults the vendors shouted at him. X tried to talk sense into them, but the frightened vendors payed him no mind. Zero was able to dodge many of the things thrown at him. A watermelon was thrown at them, making both X and Zero jump away. Then a couple of apples hit Zero in the back of the head and X in the forehead, sending X to the pavement. Zero barred his sharp teeth as he turned towards the source of the apples. Upon impulse, he let out a loud screeching roar. X had heard Zero grunt before, especially when he was curious about something, but never had he heard such a piercing roar come from Zero's paralyzed vocal muscles. His roar terrified the vendors, making them pack up their stands and head out. Zero chased after the apple vendor that had hit the both of them. The panicked vendors quickly got away from Zero, who soon stopped in the realization of what he was doing.
The blond turned back towards X, who was still down on the pavement and rubbing a new bruise just above his glasses. Zero soon came back to his senses, and also back to X's side. "You've stolen from them in the past, I bet..." X chuckled. "Though, that was hardly mature of them to behave in such a fashion." Zero grunted gently, carefully holding X's head in his hands. He lost a few tears when he saw a few drops of blood run down X's forehead and under his glasses. X reached and pet Zero's cheek. "Its not your fault, Zero. To be honest, I'm proud of you. Even though you scared them off, you still caught yourself before someone else was injured or killed." Zero wiped the blood from X's face before slowly dropping his arms and head, closing his eyes. He felt terrible. If he hadn't stolen from those vendors before, none of this would've happened. X edged closer to Zero and pulled him into a hug. "There, there, Zero. You're atoning for your mistakes. You're doing a good job. Its just...some people aren't as willing to change their ways as you are." Zero snuggled X's head gently, nodding gently. X rubbed Zero's back and chest gently, knowing those were some of Zero's favorite spots. Zero gasped gently, blushing a little as he enjoyed X's touch. X smiled at Zero's reactions. "That's better. I have one request of you. Is it possible you can heal this? Father will be furious if he sees any manner of wound on me." Zero nodded, reaching his left hand to X's forehead. The blond's hand glowed red as he gently rubbed X's forehead. Steadily, X's wound disappeared as he enjoyed Zero's touch. When the wound was healed, Zero carefully lifted X up and onto his feet. X giggled. "Aren't you a gentleman." Zero blushed, snuggling X's thigh. X smiled more, offering his hand to Zero. Zero took his hand, letting X pull him up before they went in search of more vendors and stores.
It was past noon when X and Zero arrived home at the mansion. They had managed to find some different vendors, who had never encountered Zero and had been fortunate enough to avoid any gang encounters. Zero carried the bulk of the groceries as X guided him along, hanging onto 5 bags. As they were putting away the groceries, Light walked into the kitchen holding Zero's helmet. "There you are. A lot of people heard a loud roar earlier. I was getting worried." X chuckled. "We heard it too." Zero had to turn his head and cough. It wasn't an ill cough, it was a dry dehydrated cough. "Might you have had something to do with it, Zero?" Light asked. Zero slowly looked back at Light, nodding deeply. X gently sighed. "Zero was the one who made that roar. Our market trip didn't go as we'd hoped." Light looked at Zero. "No voice, but quite a pair of lungs. Get some water and tell me what happened. After that, I'll give Zero his armor back." Zero got a glass of water as Light sat in a chair at the table. X slowly walked to his father. Light pulled X into his lap before watching Zero come closer. X began to explain. "Zero had stolen from our local vendors before. When they saw us, they threw their produce at us. We both got hit in the head with apples, which is when Zero roared and chased after the apple vendor." Light looked at Zero with a firm look, gesturing to him to come to him and X. Zero had never seen that kind of look before and approached with caution. He didn't take anymore sips of water as he came closer. X looked at his father. "Please, father. He was a good boy. He stopped himself and came to his senses. He even healed the bruise I got from the apple."
Light pulled Zero into his lap, feeling the back of Zero's head. "You must've healed already. Thank you for healing X's wound. Finish your water. I have something for you." Zero nodded with a gentle grunt, drinking the rest of his water. When Zero was finished with his water, Light put the helmet on Zero's head and pressed the head crystal to activate it. Zero was pleasantly surprised to see his Absolute Armor as good as new again. "I've modified your helmet to catch your brainwaves and translate your thoughts into speech that matches what your voice should sound like. The output unit is your new collar." Light explained to him. X smiled, seeing Zero back in his armor and spotting the black spiked collar added to his armor. "How cute. It bears your name. Black and red look great on you."