agh, there so much pressure for this fluff thing! everyone's like 'yay, can't wait for fluff' and i don't know if my fluff will be up to fluff standards. well, enjoy!

Summary: An accident befalls JD, and though all his basic memories like speaking, counting and even his ability as a doctor remains, all but one personal memory is lost, and only Dr. Cox can help him! Will JD ever be able to function properly again? Will he even ever remember who he is? And what's this rivalry between Cox and Turk?

Rating: Um, I think it's rated T for now because of the blood, but since it's a CoxJD fanfic, who knows? Maybe I might have to bump up the rating later ...

Song of the chapter: (yes, this is new!) 'All The Same' by Sick Puppies, imagine the song from Perry's point of view.

Regular text.

"Speaking."

Thinking.

(Author's notes within story.)

Chapter Four: Puppies and Butterflies, For God's Sake

JD gazed attentively out the car window and images raced past. He sat with his arms against the car door, head turning every now and then to follow something as it appeared and vanished. Perry, who was driving, had gotten over the uncomfortable first few minutes. His method with about everything was stay prickly enough to keep everything out but with JD in his current condition, it just wasn't right to be prickly.

They pulled into a parking lot beside JD's apartment building. Perry stepped out stiffly with car keys in hand before going over to the passenger's side and opening JD's door. JD blinked up at him blankly.

"Remember anything yet?" the older doctor asked. JD remained silent, simply smiling at the only person he just barely recognized. "I'll take that as a no." Perry reached over JD and unbuckled him, seeing as JD couldn't or wouldn't do it himself. To his surprise, Perry felt JD tense up as he leaned over to reach the buckle.

As the seat belt whipped away automatically, Perry stepped away uncomfortably. He'd felt JD's breath on his ear and he didn't like the feeling it gave him. After a quick shake, Perry pulled JD to his feet once more and led him inside, and JD followed quietly without question.

After a few flights of stairs that left JD with a bit of confusion in his eyes, Perry walked straight up to his apartment. It kind of bothered him that he should know so much about an insignificant peon like Newbie but he entered the room, all the same.

JD walked in slowly, almost in wonder, gazing about with a furrowed brow. It was his apartment, though he didn't know. He went to the couch and ran his hand over the back of it, then walked by Rowdy, gently brushing his fingertips over the stuffed dog as he passed it.

Standing a little ways back, Perry let JD explore the room he'd been living in for years. JD didn't seemed surprised but more soaking in the details. Perry was leaning against the wall, arms crossed, head down, when JD's voice suddenly shocked him awake.

"Rowdy!"

Perry blinked up at JD, who was now crouched before the stuffed dead dog, eyes glowing with recognition. As had happened before, the word swelled in JD's mind till he was sure that this oddly familiar object was to be called 'Rowdy'. Perry let a small smile grow on his lips, knowing that no one would see it, as he thought how angry Turk would get that JD's ass of a mentor and his dead stuffed dog were recognized before him.

After a few moments, JD left his investigating and returned to his mentor. He stood before Perry with a blank smile, stepping from foot to foot, as if eager to continue looking somewhere else.

Suddenly he seized Perry's hand, grinning, and began pulling him out of the apartment. "C'mon Perry!" Perry allowed himself to directed purely out of shock then he realized suddenly that JD was improving, not in the order he'd imagined, but improving nonetheless.

After getting into the hall, Perry removed his hand from Newbie's grip and led him back down the stairs. JD cast a glance back towards the apartment but Perry couldn't discern his expression. Once back to the car, Perry opened the passenger door and pushed JD in gently. JD seemed to get it this time, and promptly sat down. He still didn't get the seat belt though, and Perry felt an odd sort of dread as he gripped the buckle and leaned over.

JD became tense as Perry's footing faltered and he became unbalanced. For two infinitely long seconds, Perry leaned on JD's chest and placed his hand on forward instinctively to stop his descent ... right on JD's upper leg. JD's eyes flashed with something like alarm and his hands came up, but Perry had already buckled JD in and returned to his feet.

Smoothing his ruffled shirt, Perry closed the car door and went around to the driver's side. He glanced around self-consciously, just to see if anyone had witnessed the small incident, before climbing in and driving the car onto the road again.

Perry looked over at JD once they hit the mainstream and was oddly hurt to see how shaken he was. JD gave him a blinking stare, eyes shocked and maybe even a little hurt. Feeling his instinctively response to most anything, Perry felt his anger tempered with a slight bit of guilt.

Those first few uncomfortable minutes smoothed over and JD's body became less tense. Eventually, his blank smile came back and he leaned against the door, gazing at the world flying by.

After a bit of thought, Perry decided to listen to that psychiatric doctor's suggestion and headed for the park. It was little more than a green, grassy stretch with a large pond and a trail ringed with trees. But, as Perry pulled into the little parking lot beside it, he saw several groups of people, like kids with their mothers, pairs of teens strolling hand in hand and even an old couple tossing bits of bread to pigeons.

He scoped out the groups for a moment to see if there was anyone he knew but there was no one, so Perry climbed out of his car and retrieved JD from the passenger's side. JD stepped out slowly, sniffing the air with blinking blue eyes. Wondering what he was smelling, Perry looked around then realized he could feel moisture in the air, and smell it too. The scent of approaching rain.

Just over the trees, beyond the small lake, gray clouds could be seen rolling closer slowly. Perry guessed it would be a few hours till the storm arrived and, since it was still quite warm and sunny here, decided to bring JD out for a bit.

First, JD just stood like a newborn fawn, blinking and grinning childishly till Perry led him to the grass. Beside the pond, the soil was fertile and several bright flowers bloomed. A butterfly or two fluttered from blossom to blossom and JD stared in wonder before following and attempting to touch their dazzling wings.

Perry followed silently, just making sure that JD didn't get hurt when suddenly he heard a bout of unrestrained laughter. JD had sat down in the grass with a butterfly, an orange and black one, lighting down onto his outstretched hand. Perry rolled his eyes at how girly he could possibly be but had to admit to himself, he liked how innocently happy JD was. No fear plaguing his mind, no anger or hate ruining his heart, just happy to marvel at the tiny miracle the now fluttered on his hand.

"See, Perry?" JD asked, lifting his arm for him to see. Perry watched as the butterfly, disturbed by the movement, flew off.

"Yeah," Perry replied gruffly, giving in and sitting beside him. "I see."

For the next hour or so, JD drifted from one part of the park to another, stopping every now and then to gaze at something. Perry glanced up at the sky to keep an eye on the approaching storm. He didn't want to get caught in the rain because, though many people were unaware, Perry hated being wet. He couldn't stand his clothes clinging to his skin once he got inside somewhere dry and how things like crumbs and whatnot stuck to his body as well.

As Perry considered how much he disliked things sticking to him, someone's voice jerked him out of his thoughts. The sound of JD laughing and a small dog's bark accompanied the feminine tone.

"Is he your son?" A short, small woman asked. Perry instantly felt a liking for her and didn't know if it was the intelligent, kind glint in her eyes or the way she stood so confidently. In her hand was the end of a leash. On the other end was a small white dog that was currently bouncing about JD's lap and licking his face.

Perry felt a surge of embarrassment but he covered it quickly by bringing up his mask of indifference. "Well, sort of. His real dad's dead."

"Oh," she said, standing beside him as her dog continued to scuffle and wriggle in JD's arms. "Is he alright?"

"No, actually. He hit his head, if you can believe it or not, and has yet to recover his memory." Perry replied bluntly. He felt no need to soften the truth with this stranger, knowing in his gut that she wouldn't make a big deal about it.

There were a few moments of silence between the two as JD flopped onto his back in the grass and let the white-furred canine slobber over his face with shrieks of unrepressed laughter. Finally, the woman shifted her weight and gave a wry smile.

"You know," she started and Perry looked at her with slowly blinking eyes, "I got my son that dog and this kid has paid more attention to it in the last ten minutes then he has in the past year we've had her." Then she looked up at the sky and murmured quietly, "It's going to rain real soon."

After gently extricating the small dog from JD, she left the pair of doctors, though one slightly out of it, and went back into the city with a goodbye tossed over her shoulder with the turn of her head. Perry smelled the air again and noticed how much thicker it felt with the oncoming rain.

Funny, he thought as he helped JD to his feet. It's like some sort of disaster is about to happen and this thick air is the foreboding embodied.

As Perry opened the car door, he felt that dread again and made sure for several seconds that his footing was absolute before leading JD in and reaching over with buckle in hand. He didn't pull away as soon as it clicked into place though, because something felt different, almost wrong. JD didn't tense up as he usually did. Perry leaned out to see the reason why.

JD's head was lolled to the side, his eyes barely open and a dreamy smile on his face. It took Perry a moment to realize the kid was almost asleep.

"Playin' with puppies and butterflies really took it out of ya, didn't it?" he muttered sarcastically but JD didn't even notice the bite to his voice. He merely woke up and tensed as he realized Perry was leaned over him but relaxed as his mentor backed away and closed the door. Perry walked around to the other side slowly, reflecting on the now gray sky and his relationship to JD. He'd said he was his boss to Dr. Gray and that he was like a father to JD when that lady asked but if he was mentor-type figure, why did his heart tighten in his chest with dreadful anticipation every time he buckled JD's seatbelt? What sort of tension was it that spread through their limbs whenever their skin brushed?

The door seemed to have appeared suddenly once Perry reached the driver's side and climbed in. Glancing once at JD to make sure he was alright, the older man pulled out his keys and turned them in the ignition slot.

The engine turned once and fell silent, refusing to start, just as the rain began to pour.

big things are gonna happen next chapter! what with the rain and the car not working and stuff. i'm not sure how long it'll be but we'll see once i start writing again...