A/N: Because really, did anyone expect her to just be completely fine after blowing up an iceberg when everyone else said it couldn't be done? Yeah, right. So I thought, why not use this to give Mahad and Lena the quality family time that they no longer seem to have in the series? And unless you had a deprived childhood, everyone should be able to guess what Le Monde d'Or is based off.
"Am I glad to see you Cortes! I thought we were gonna be dead meat if not for Lena." Cortes shook his head at the antics of the seventeen year old boy. Mahad and Dahlia had planned to blow up the iceberg which would have destroyed Puerto Angle by blowing themselves up; thankfully the plan had failed and Lena had stepped in to save the day.
Finally Mahad stopped teasing this co-pilot and turned back to Cortes.
"Where's Lena?" he questioned, his face drawing tighter in worry.
Sighing Cortes wished he didn't have to be the one to tell Mahad that the morning's exertion had hurt Lena. "She's at your house with the Vector."
"At our house? But the Vector never leaves his light house, well except when he comes with us on the Saint Nazaire. "
It was better to just say it straight: dancing around the issue would only make Mahad even more nervous.
"Melting that iceberg was harder than she thought it would be. The Vector warned her there wasn't enough light, but she did it anyway." The unspoken for you lingered in the air.
"Lena," moaned her brother as the turned heel quickly and ran through Puerto Angel 's winding streets. Thankfully the block wasn't too big and he arrived home quickly, but winded. He banged through the door, taking the steps two at a time and them stopped short outside Lena's door to catch his breath and make himself more presentable. If he went in looking like he did now, wide eyed and panting- well he didn't want her to be even more worried.
When his heart rate finally felt as normal as it would get, he opened the door, wincing at the squeak the hinge produced.
"Ah, Mahad. I had wondered when you would make your way from the docking port to home. Lena will be fine, she's running a slight fever that is to be expected after using so much of her seijin powers without sunlight, and she's sleeping now. I don't believe she will wake up until late tonight, perhaps even tomorrow morning," the Vector answered Mahad's unvoiced questions as he rose from the chair near the window seat where Lena was laying.
He was so engrossed in staring at his sister that he was startled when the Vector placed a hand on Mahad's shoulder; he hadn't even seen the Vector cross the room.
"She'll be fin Mahad. Now, I've left some water in a basin with a cloth if her fever gets any worse you'll need to keep her forehead cool and help her brake her fever. Also she …"
Mahad cut him off, "I know. I use to take care of her when she got sick or hurt. Mom had to work in the fields everyday so it fell to me to take care of her."
"Then I leave her in capable hands," the Vector smiled gently and walked out the door.
Mahad walked over o the vacant chair, picking up the book at the bottom of his sister's bed. While Dahlia might mock him for not being able to read, it was far from the truth; he loved to read but it didn't mesh with his flyboy persona, he had all but stopped.
He chuckled when he read the book's title, Le Monde d'Or; it had been his favorite book as a child. It was about a young boy who discovered a map that leads him to another planet which was filled with treasure. The story had been his favorite because of the pirates who were also looking for the treasure; living under the Sphere caused him to be sympathetic to their cause.
Mahad sat down, opened to the first page and began to read, keeping an eye on Lena.
~.~
The sun was beginning to set and the boy was finding the treasure when Lena began to make noises and shift on her impromptu bed. Placing the back of his hand on her forehead, he noted that he Vector had predicted had come true; Lena's fever had risen. He dipped the washcloth in the basin and began to tell her a story as he placed it on her forehead.
"Remember that time right before Dad left when you and I got it into our head to make Mom and Dad a cake? Neither one of us could figure out the instructions so we just made it up as we went. You must have been three, maybe even closer to four at the time. That cake was so burnt and disgusting, but Mom and Dad both had big slices. They were so proud of us working together."
Lena seemed to quiet down at the sound of her brother's voice. Re-wetting the cloth, Mahad continued the story.
"They were always proud of us. I know you can't remember Dad to well, he left when you were four-ish, but I know he would be proud of what you did today; and so would Mom. Just don't do it again little sister. You had me really worried there for a moment when Cortes refused to straight out tell me anything about what happened to you. It's been my job to take care of you. It's always been." Mahad continued to tell Lena stories of their childhood while intermittently re-wetting the drying cloth all through the night.
~.~
Sunbeams steaming through the window warmed Lena's face causing her to slowly wake up. Things seemed very muddled to her; she remembered an iceberg on a collision course with Puerto Angel, using her seijin powers to melt it, and then something about Cortes carrying her. Nothing was making any sense, so she made to get out of bed and find Mahad and demand him to explain to her what exactly had happened. As she went to move she discovered that something heavy lying on her stomach wouldn't let her up
She struggled to open her eyes, why was it so hard? and discovered the problem; Mahad's head was cushioned on his arms which were folded partially on top of her.
"Mahad," she croaked, wondering why her throat felt as dry as the Sahara Block, "Ma-had."
"What?" Mahad's head popped up. Relief lit up his face as he saw that Lena's eyes were open and she was trying to talk to him.
"Finally! You're awake! The Vector said you might wake up last night or this morning but I know how you like your beauty sleep. How ya feel little sister?"
"Thirsty"
"I can fix that." In one fluid movement Mahad got up from his chair and pulled the water bottle off his belt. Looking down at his sister who had made no effort to move, he asked, "Need help?"
Blushing slightly, Lena nodded her head.
"Not a problem, what are big brothers for?" Mahad sat down on the edge of the bed and pulled Lean up so she rested comfortably on his chest. He pulled the plug off the bottle and together the siblings brought it to her lips; once the cool soothing liquid hit her dry throat she wanted to guzzle it, but Mahad didn't let her.
"That's enough for now little sister, I don't want you getting sick now. " He capped the bottle and tossed it gently into the chair. It felt good sitting here with Lena safe within his arms; safe from Diwan, Oslo and anyone else who ever tried to hurt his baby sister.
A quiet voice jolted him out of his thoughts. "So Mahad, what happened yesterday? When did you and Dahlia get home in the Hyperion? Why did you fall asleep in my room? How did I get in my room? What happened to me?"
"Whoa, slow down there little Lena. A guy can only answer so many questions at once ya' know!" As he filled her in on the previous day's events, he took stock of how she looked; she was still pale but her fever had disappeared and her voice wasn't as raspy. He predicted that with a few more hours of sleep in the sun and solid meal, she'd be as good as new, Which let him take his first deep breath in what felt like days.
"And then you got a fever so I've been watching you all night. Then you woke up, and the rest you know, sis." Mahad valiantly suppressed a grin as he watched Lena yawn for the umpteenth time; food could wait for later, right now she might just face-plant into her soup. "I know you don't want to hear it but it's time for you to go back to sleep."
"But Mahad, I just got up," yawned Lena. "I don't need to go to sleep yet. I'm wide awake."
"Yeah, and I'm best buds with Oslo," smirked Mahad. He knew it wasn't the best method to reason with his sister, but it was just so much fun to tease her, and it felt good knowing that he still could. "Ya know Lena; you scared me today, using your powers like you did. When Cortes told me you got hurt trying to save me, I thought my heart stopped. Dad made me promise to always look after you and after Mom got taken I knew I was the only thing between the Sphere and you. I want you to promise to never try that again. Know your limits Lena. You're important to everyone at Puerto Angel; what would happen if you weren't around! We'd be vulnerable to any seijin attack! Please, don't make me worry about you. Please don't get yourself hurt."
She just looked so small, sitting there with her head down and the sunlight streaming through the window panes. Mahad took the chance to dash away the wetness accumulating at the corner of his eyes.
"If I'm gonna promise that, then Mahad you have to too!" Lena lifted her head up to look him straight in the eyes. "We're a team, and the only family we have left so you're gonna have to stay with me."
"Alright little Lena, I promise to never go looking for trouble and to always know my limits, unless it means saving you. Then you gotta know that all bets are off; come Cortes or Oslo, I'm gonna save you."
"Okay, I promise too," yawned Lena again. She snuggled back down into her pillows as Mahad pulled the blankets up under her chin. He made to get up, but Lena stopped him by grabbing his sleeve. "Will you read me to sleep, like Mom did?"
How could he refuse that?
"Okay. And I have just the book in mind," he replied pulling Le Monde d'Or from where it had fallen to the floor. "Once upon a time, in a far off place, a pirate named Captain Flint roamed space stealing loot and hiding it away…."
The main character had just discovered his map when Lena's head dropped to the side and she began to breathe evenly. Mahad placed the book back on the floor beside Lena's window bed and stood up, brushing the hair away from her face.
"I love you Lena, and don't you ever forget it."
He was almost across the room when he heard her sigh back, "I love you more." He smiled as he shut her door behind him. Yeah, little sisters could be a pain, and cause so much worry. But at the end of the day, Mahad wouldn't have it any other way.