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Karen sighed as Michel went back to screaming. She glanced over to Eledore who had immediately shot his head up. She sighed, "Eledore, I can handle this. Go back to sleep." Eledore looked at her, eyes glazed over from lack of sleep, and the man shook his head no. "My little buddy..." He yawned, "I didn't mean to...I didn't..." He yawned and against his will fell back to sleep. Karen sighed, and jumped as a particularly sharp scream caught her ears. "SHxT!" She mumbled. Michel had smashed his head against a rock. Grabbing him she began to try to hold him down, "Come on Michel! Stop thrashing!"
There current position was no place to keep an injured soldier, or a sick one. Michel was very sick, his fever too high. He was delirious seeing things that weren't there, and he'd managed to hurt himself from scratching, biting, and even bursting out with a loud scream and running into the forest. Shiro, Kiki, and Sanders kept trying to reach someone to come get them, but they just couldn't get through. Too much static.
Shiro entered the tent, "Karen what is it?" The woman looked over at him, and sighed, "He cut his head open, hold him down!" Shiro scurried passed the sleeping Eledore, and grabbed the young teen, making his head rest against his lap. He continued to thrash and scream as Karen, checked over his head; his screams waking Eledore, and drawing Sanders and Kiki to the tent. Finally he went limp, and Karen finished up doctoring his head with the greatest of ease. "DamX kid..." She muttered with a sigh. She picked up the rag that had fallen off his brow, and dipped it in a bowel of water near her. Placing the cool rag against his head, she wasn't surprised to see Eledore sleepily joining her. He reached down and pat Michel's cheek, "Hey now...it's okay." Shiro looked at the exhausted man, "Eledore, get some sleep."
The blonde looked up at him, "Huh?" Shiro frowned, "You heard me! Goto sleep, it's been five days, and you've slept maybe an hour a day, Sleep." Eledore looked down at Michel whose cheeks were flushed red, "I can't...gotta say I'm sorry when he wakes..." He yawned the next few words becoming garbled. Despite what he said, Eledore fell asleep right there, his arm slung across the smallest team member. "Oh Eledore..." Karen sighed looking at the man. Kiki tapped her shoulder, "It's my turn...Go on and stretch your legs."
"Shouldn't you be headed home?" Shiro asked, receiving a glare. He held up his hands, "Okay, okay, sorry."
Sanders, Karen, and Shiro left the tent, and went for a small walk, staying in hearing distance of the group. "Eledore is going to beat himself up for this until Michel gets better." Sanders said with a sigh, walking over to a lake not far from the tent. "Stupid thing." Karen said with a sigh, "And stupid Eledore." Shiro sighed, "It wasn't really his fault." Karen sighed, "I know that, I'm calling him stupid because he blames himself." Shiro nodded looking out at the dingy water. It had been five days ago when Michel's terrible fever had come...
/FLASHBACK/
Michel was reading a letter from Bibi:again: a small smile on his face. He looked out at the lake, and folded up his letter putting it in his pocket. The sun wasn't very high in the sky yet, but it was hot. Eledore suddenly appeared next to him, and plopped down next to him, "DXmm it's hot!" Michel looked at the blonde, "Then go for a swim." Eledore's face twisted with disgust, "Are you kidding? Look at that water." Michel did look at it and shrugged simply stating, "It's about as dirty as you are."
Eledore's cheeks turned red, "WHAT DID YOU SAY?"
Michel looked nervously at him and held up his hands, "Well you are perverted..."
Eledore pounced on the smaller, and younger soldier, yelling at him, and stretching his cheeks. Sanders and Shiro who were working on the tank they'd come in looked over at the two. Shiro sighed, "If only we could get this thing running, Everyone's been so restless." Sanders laughed at the two fighting just ahead of them, "Yeah...look at them. Well even if we don't get this thing running, someone is bound to come find us." Karen, who was helping Kiki start a fire, shouted over to them, "That could be the problem. Someone from our side, or from the other side could come look for us." Kiki laughed and pointed, "Uh-oh, poor Michel."
Eledore had picked up the young teen, and held him over his head. He threw the squirming boy into the water with a laugh, "HA! Now your just as dirty as me!" Michel surface, and yelled, "That wasn't funny!" His head bobbed in and out of the grimy water, and he coked and sputtered on the water entering his mouth. Eledore laughed with his hands on his hips, and ran a hand through his blonde hair. "Well that will teach you not to mess with me!" Eledore sighed, looking at the young teen in the water, who had a puzzled and panicked look on his face.
"Michel? Come out of the water you weirdo."
Michel looked at him with his wide blue eyes, "I-I can't!" He choked as he got a mouthful of water. Eledore glared at him, "Stop playing, that's not funny!" Michel's brown, slightly orange hair plastered itself to his head, his wet curls blurring his vision. "No, I-I really can't! My fo-foot! It's...IT'S STUCK!" His head submerged again, and that was all it took for Eledore to tear off his jacket and dive in after him.
Shiro and Sanders joined Karen and Kiki, looking at the two confused "What the Hell..." Shiro murmured. "What are they doing? I didn't catch what they said..." Karen's eyes narrowed as she watched them, something was wrong.
Eledore went under the water, and opened his eyes seeing that Michel's foot was caught in what looked like some sort of mettle wire. He resurfaced gasping for air, and told the tear eyed Michel, "I think a gundam, or something crashed here at one point. It looks like one of the cables from a gundam has your foot." Eledore couldn't find a better excuse to explain how Michel's foot had been caught. "Eledore...hel-" Without warning Michel was completely submerged. Eledore dove underwater.
Something had shifted, and now the cable had moved just enough to make Michel's head completely submerge under the water. 'SXIT,SXIT,SXIT!' The panicking blonde thought. He resurfaced, and shouted, "MICHEL'S FOOT IS CAUGHT! I NEED A KNIFE!" Shiro cursed, and rushed back to their tents to get one of his blades. Eledore took in a breath and submerged, and starred at Michel who was starting to choke on water. Eledore grabbed Michel's face and pressed his lips to the young teens giving him air. Michel looked at him surprised, but closed his eyes, the water hurting them. Eledore did this again, and again, going back for air, and giving it to Michel. Finally Shiro arrived, and began sawing away at the cable.
Michel went slack just as they finished cutting through the cable. Eledore grabbed Michel around his waist, and dragged him back to land, placing him gently on the ground. He pressed his hands on the teens chest, and compressed it whispering, "One...Two...Three..." He then meshed his lips with Michel's again, giving him air. Michel's eyes remained closed. "ShiX!" Everyone watched nervously as the pattern continued on.
"One...Two...Three."
Breathe.
Nothing.
"One...Two...Three."
Breathe.
Nothing.
"One...Two...Three."
Breathe.
Nothing.
"One...Two...Three."
Breathe.
Nothing.
"One...Two...Three."
Breathe.
Michel began to throw up water, and that was when Karen took over. She did the best she could, but he developed a fever. At first it was controllable, but then he just got worse and worse...
/END OF FLASHBACK/
Karen sighed, "Well it's time to sleep...the sun's setting." Sanders headed for the tank, "I'm going to keep trying." Shiro followed him, wishing to keep trying as well. That was all they could do. Try to get through, and continue the repairs on the tank when they could.
That night Eledore woke, and blinked rapidly at his surroundings. His eyes focused in on Michel, who had curled up to him, seeking warmth. Eledore looked at the small teen in his arms guiltily, when he noticed, that Michel's brow was cool to the touch. Gently he shook the teen, and smiled as blue eyes met his own. "Ele...dore?" Miched yawned, "What is it?"
Eledore gently ran his head through Michel's curls, "Do you feel okay?"
"My head hurts a little."
Eledore pulled his friend even closer, "Oh God Michel I am so sorry...SO SORRY!" Tears sprang to his eyes, and whispered, "I prayed...I prayed for you to wake up. I said if you woke up, that I'd no longer become a musician-God I was so worried."
"You can't do that." Michel mumbled. "I like your songs."
Eledore looked at him, and laughed, "You do?"
Michel sleepily nodded, "But hey...don't throw me in water anymore..."
Eledore turned serious and nodded, "Okay."
"And Eledore?"
"Yeah?"
"Your squishing me."
Eledore pulled away with a laugh, "Oh sorry little buddy, sorry!" Michel nodded, and closed his eyes. Eledore smiled, "You sure you forgive me?" Michel smiled sleepily, "Yes, just shut up."
"I'm going to write a song about you!"
"Eledore-"
"No, there will be a whole CD about you!"
"Eledore..."
"NO! I'll write an Opera about you! 'Michel the pansy, yet brave soldier!' Yeah-"
"ELEDORE," Michel snapped, "Shut up." The two smiled at each other, and Michel scooted closer to the source of warmth, falling asleep, Eledore falling asleep just as fast.
End