A/N: New chapter! Yay!

Fact of the Day(#13): The British Empire was considered the most powerful empire in the 1920s, overseeing the conduction of over 23% of the world's population at that time.

I hope you guys like! = )

He was drowning in darkness, screams of grief and agony resounding all about him and throughout his bones, devouring his very entity. He couldn't see through the pitch darkness surrounding him, but he had the exhilarating, weightless sense of free-falling. Yet he felt pinned, tantalized by the idea of free movement.

And though the very atmosphere was boiling, an impossible frozen drizzle was falling steadily, pelting his tingling skin. The sound of sizzles and pops and the smell of scorched flesh penetrated his senses.

A light appeared, as if by some ridiculous magic, before him, accompanied by an all too familiar voice, "Lord Hermes, please wake up; you shall feel much better if you can just- yes, that's right; come now, open your eyes."

Hermes stretched out an arm, reaching for a lifeline that wasn't there but somehow could be, if he could just-

The light grew quickly, blinding him as he was pulled at a painful speed, and he met the waking world.

He jerked awake rather unpleasantly, blinking his eyes open cautiously, trying in vain to ignore the tremendous throbbing in his head. He found himself in his own bed, and swathed in several blankets, even as his body was racked with horrendous shivers. Something cool and wet was resting on his head. An attempt at keeping his fever down, he assumed, despite his body's evident icy notion.

"Thank Zeus," a kindly voice. The same from his dream, he realized with a start.

He also realized, with a growing sense of dread, that three familiar, concerned faces were peering down at him: Athena, Apollo, and Asclepius, Apollo's gentle son.

"What. . . hap'n'd?" He was taken aback by the rawness and weakness of his voice. Was he really weaker than he already felt?

"My lord, you have fallen incredibly ill. I feared, had you been unconscious any longer-" Asclepius' voice faltered, and for a moment he was no longer with them. Then, just as quickly as it had vanished, the light returned to his gaze, and he waved a hand dismissively, smiling kindly again, "Well, nevermind that now. How do you feel?"

Hermes took one moment to process the question, then another to craft an honest answer, "Like I've been run over by Apollo's ego-"

"Hey!"

"-and battled a great number of lions in the Colosseum."

Asclepius nodded thoughtfully, summoning a cup to his hand, "Lord Hermes, I must insist you drink some water. I shall check back on you when need be, and you had best get some more rest in the meantime."

Hermes sat up wordlessly, but groaned when his stomach clenched painfully. He clenched his jaw, eyes squeezing shut as he pitched to one side, breath rapid and sweat gathering quickly on his brow.

Had Apollo not caught him, he would have surely struck his head on the bed frame. Apollo propped his brother against him, arms wrapped about him to hold him up. He pressed the soaked cloth back onto his burning head with one hand, the other gripping Hermes' wrist in reassurance, "Hermes, ubi est?"

"S-stomach," he replied painfully, groaning and back arching, his nails digging into his palms. He cried out suddenly, unable to stifle it as his stomach churned painfully. "Please, make it stop!"

Apollo looked at Asclepius pleadingly, "Iuva eos."

Asclepius nodded, determined and firm, "I daresay I shall do my best, father." He sent Athena to fetch more cloths, and told Apollo to coax some water into Hermes.

"If he can drink the water, even a little," Asclepius explained calmly, "he will be able to expel whatever is causing him such pain from his system, and he shall feel immensely better. The tricky part is convincing him of that."

"Why has he not already got it out?"

"That is commonly what happens with these mortal illnesses, yes. However, Lord Hermes has clearly not eaten anything of relative sustenance in days. His body has not had what is required to rid itself of the problem." Asclepius replied slowly, studying his father closely, as though he should have already known this.

He vanished before Apollo could answer.

After some time, Apollo managed to shake off his son's words, brushing the matter aside for the moment.

Getting Hermes better was more important right now.

"'Pollo," Hermes gasped, words melding together, "pl'se, help. H'rts."

"Scio, frater," Apollo murmured softly. Alright, he thought, clearly the usual method isn't going to work. His face lit up, an idea popping into his head. He dipped two fingers into the water cup, and, fingers still dripping, brushed them quickly across his brother's lips. When it didn't elicit a reaction, he tried again, then once more.

Finally, Hermes' tongue flicked out to catch the sating water. When he groaned, clearly wanting more, Apollo quickly obliged, holding the cup to Hermes' chapped lips.

After several small sips, Hermes' body finally rejected the water, launching him into a coughing fit. He shook with wet coughs for an eternity before it tapered off, and he lay against Apollo for a long moment, dazed. Then bile rose in his throat, and he barely managed to retch into the basin that Apollo held up to his chin.

Hermes mumbled a thanks before passing out once again. His breaths, Apollo noted with satisfaction, though still swift, had evened out a little. At that moment, Asclepius teleported back to the room, blankets heaped in a pile and a bowl of cold water floating behind him. He dropped the blankets at the foot of the bed, sparing a quick glance at the bowl in Apollo's hands before focusing back on Hermes.

"Asclepius," Apollo started, "do you think perhaps Hermes simply hasn't eaten because he's ill?"

Asclepius checked Hermes' temperature before answering, "I had already considered that, Dad. Alas, that cannot be. Lord Hermes has contracted a severe case of influenza type B. And, if memory serves, the virus requires a mere twenty-four hours to go into full effect He has, however, not eaten or rested properly for several days."

"So you mean to tell me. . . he hasn't eaten or slept well, but neither are a result of illness?"

"Father, I suspect the illness has nothing to do with his lack of appetite and sleep, and both have everything to do with his falling ill."

They both said nothing when hot tears ran down Apollo's cheeks and onto Hermes' pale face.

"Apollo!"

A desperate cry emerged from Hermes' raw throat as Apollo rushed to Hermes' room, finding his brother curled in on himself tightly, tears streaming down his cheeks as shook vigorously in what Apollo could only identify as pure, adulterated fear.

"Apollo! Help, please!" Hermes cried out again, groping blindly as if searching for the sun god in pitch darkness.

Apollo grasped his little brother's hands firmly, "Quid est, Hermes?"

The touch had calmed the messenger, but he was still clearly panicked. He had curled up in the center of his bed, as if fearing what might be beneath it or even around it. His eyes flew open, suddenly, those baby blues impossibly frantic and frightened, "K-Kronos, he-he came back with Ouranos and all the others. . . and May, she- oh, Fates, May. . ." His voice cracked, "Apollo, she died, and it was my fault! I should have helped her and Luke; I should've stayed! If I had just-!"

"Shh, pax," Apollo soothed, laying in the bed and gathering Hermes in his arms. "Kronos et Ouranos are scattered in milia parum partum; numquam sunt coming back. And tui May salva est."

Hermes shifted, burying his face in Apollo's shirt, gripping at it desperately. Apollo pulled his brother closer, holding him close as he sobbed quietly. Apollo lay patiently, chin resting protectively atop Hermes' head.

They stayed that way until Hermes drifted back to sleep, tears still staining his face.

But Apollo did not sleep that night.

A/N: Sorry it's so short; it always seems longer when I'm typing it out.

The next one should be longer for real, though, and I'll hopefully be able to post it sooner rather than later.

Until then, please leave a review, leave a favourite, and, once again, thank you for reading!

Goodbye and Farewell for now,

JamesHowlette1943