"Alexander, stop fussing over me!" Hephaestion grumbled. "I'm fine!"
Alexander crossed his arms and glared at Hephaestion. "You are NOT fine, Hephaestion! And if you would stop being so pig headed and stubborn you would see that!"
Hephaestion dropped down into the chair next to his bed and buried his head into his hands. He felt slightly dizzy, and boy was it ever hot in here! He would not let this stupid cold get the best of him. He simply would NOT. He looked up wearily and gave a half-hearted smile. "Honestly, I'll be fine. I just need to get started on….well, all this stuff" he waved his hand at the large pile of paperwork stacked on either side of his desk.
Alexander frowned. Hephaestion could be so stubborn. "Your paperwork will wait. We aren't going anywhere for a while. The men are all getting some much needed rest and enjoying their time here. Why can't you just sit back and do the same?"
"But Alexander, the troop census…"
"Ptolemy is handling it" Alexander interrupted.
Hephaestion shook his head. "The supply inventory…"
"Perdiccas is handling it" Alexander interrupted again.
"But, what about the…"
"Hephaestion, everything is being handled" Alexander interrupted yet again in an exasperated tone.
"But…" Hephaestion tried again, stopping as Alexander raised his hand to silence him.
"Hephaestion Amyntoros! I order you to shut up and stop worry about everything. It is all being taken care of." Alexander grinned. "And not by me this time."
That actually made Hephaestion chuckle. "Well, that's a relief at least. We all know what a bang up job you did the last time you tried to take over for me!"
He ducked as Alexander lobbed a pillow at his head, laughing.
"Yeah, yeah. Rub it in." Alexander walked over and reached out, laying his hand on Hephaestion's brow. "Gods, Hephaestion! You are burning up! What in Hades are you doing out of bed? Get back in there!"
"I'm sick of being in bed" Hephaestion grumbled. He smiled weakly at Alexander. "But I do kind of like you ordering me to bed."
Alexander rolled his eyes. "Oh brother." He took Hephaestion's hand and pulled him to his feet. "Get to bed, now. And stop giving me that look. You're sick." He wrapped his arms around Hephaestion and pressed a gentle kiss to his fevered brow. "Come on."
Hephaestion grumbled a little bit more, but allowed Alexander to lead him to the bed. Still under protest, he allowed Alexander to slide the robe from his shoulders. Normally standing naked before Alexander would lead to something fun but, if he were honest with himself, he really felt like terrible.
"Lie down, Hephaestion" Alexander ordered. As much as he loved looking at Hephaestion's amazing body, he certainly wasn't going to start anything like that right now. He helped Hephaestion lie down and then covered him with a thick fur. He put a finger to Hephaestion's lips to hush him when the stubborn General started to protest. "No, I know you're hot, but you have to stay covered up. You have to sweat out this fever." He leaned over and very gently kissed Hephaestion's forehead again. "Now, your orders are to stay there until I say you can get up. And take your medicine like you're supposed to. I'll have Bagoas bring in that herbal concoction I learned from Aristotle. It should help with the fever."
Hephaestion made a face. "But Alexander…"
"Hephaestion! Stop arguing with me. Gods, sometimes you drive me crazy." Alexander smiled warmly at him. "It's a good thing I love you."
"Fine, you win. You know, I really don't feel very good…" Hephaestion sighed and closed his eyes. "…and I am really tired…"
Alexander stood in the doorway, watching as Hephaestion took a deep breath and fell asleep almost instantly. He didn't think he had ever met anyone more stubborn in his life. He smiled. It was one of the things he loved about Hephaestion. Leaving orders with the guards that Hephaestion was not to be disturbed, he went in search of Bagoas. He would also make a sacrifice to Asclepius for Hephaestion's quick healing.