A/n: I´m going to be swift today: Thanks for the reviews, AB-chan(my amazing proofreader as always, no news here hehe), the new reader, the sweet ghostgirl, the anons and who read but was to shy to give feedback. Love to all of you. I want to apologize for the drabble-length but I´m in a moving out process this month so writing is not being easy. So I can´t promise weekly updates until February, I hope you guys and girls can forgive me. I will try my best to not let you down. Especially since Gotham is coming back this month and everyone will need to be medicated. So the next two chapters will be extra-special, okay? Pinkie-promise.

Chapter 7: Gotham´s Sick Princess

Time to wake up. Oswald and Ed were going to have a busy day ahead, so they needed to get out of bed earlier than they usually did (earlier even than when Iris came into their room to jump on the bed between them while they were asleep most mornings), and that particular morning seemed to go smoothly. Perhaps too smoothly.

"Ed?"

"Yes, Oswald?"

"Don´t you have the impression that something is missing?" he asked uneasy.

"Missing? Where?" he was too busy dressing up to look at his husband.

"Everywhere! It´s being too easy to get ready today. We woke up alone today too!" Oswald tried to explain.

"This should be a positive thing! We have a lot to do today. So, get ready, Mayor." Ed dismissed Oswald´s concern.

"Edward Nygma. I can´t believe that you think everything is fine! Do you even know where our daughter is? Or have you forgotten about her?!" he was clearly not pleased that Edward had not noticed that Iris was not there first thing in the morning.

"Me? Are you serious?" he looked dumbfounded. "As if I could forget that we have a child, Oswald! Of course she is in her room, still sleeping, like a normal person!"

"But it´s not her 'normal', Ed. Maybe we should be worried." Oswald made a serious facial expression.

"Os, probably it was just another of her phases. Last month she would refuse to eat anything with the color red in it, and this one she was coming to our room every morning early to wake us up. Maybe she gave up on this too. Children her age do this kind of thing all the time." he explained to calm Oswald down.

"I don´t know. I´m going to check on her before we leave. She needs to get up for breakfast anyway."

"But today we don´t have time for breakfast, remember? We have meetings, openings, some charity work and underworld matters."

"Fine, but I´m still going there." he hissed. Nygma was an exceptional Chief of Staff, but the mayoral schedule shouldn´t receive any priority when there were hummingbird-related possible issues.

Before they could leave the room, a small black creature entered, flying over them.

"Isn´t that..." Cobblepot started.

"Iris´s warbler, the one she calls Cory? Yes." Ed recognized the agitated figure.

"Hi there, little guy. What do you want?" he would try to communicate with the bird. It just chirped numerous time, as if wanting to say something.

"Too bad we don´t speak 'birdnese' or whatever it´s called" Nygma mocked.

"Shut up Ed! Or I swear I will make myself a widow today! And after that I will go out at night with Barbara to search for some handsome, rich men!" Oswald threatened.

"Okay. Sorry. But it seems like the warbler wants us to follow him." he pointed out.

The warbler guided them directly to Iris´s room, where she was still in bed, laid down facing the wall and almost totally covered.

"Hummingbird?"

"Yeah?" she answered weakly.

"Are you alright?" Oswald asked worriedly.

"I don´t know..." Iris coughed and covered her head in the blankets.

"Oh no." Cobblepot felt his heart stop beating.

"What is it, Os?" Ed gave him a scared look.

"She. Is. Sick!" he screamed as if it was the arrival of the apocalypse.

"How can you be so sure?"

"See for yourself!"

Edward approached Iris, uncovered her and put his hand on her forehead. It was humid and hot, also her face had an unhealthy pallid tone.

"Oh my God! What are we going to do, Ed?! We can´t leave her like this! She is going to die!" Oswald panicked.

"What?! I´m going to die?!" Iris screamed between sneezes. She had no way of knowing that her papa was overreacting.

"No! Don´t listen to him, honeybee. I´m pretty sure you just have a cold." Ed calmed her down. "And now Os, let´s go to work and call a doctor to see her later. The servants can take care of our daughter until then."

"There´s no way I´m leaving her here and going to that office!" he decided with that stare that only "the Penguin" could give.

"You can´t miss work. Not today when our schedule is that busy." the Chief of Staff insisted.

"Ed. No. I know you will think of some excuse to explain our absence to everyone in your agenda for the day, but the right thing to do is to stay here. Even her bird called us." after he added that, Cory landed on Iris´s head and chirped proudly.

"He is a very smart bird." she cracked a smile.

"I know that. That´s why he chose to be your friend, hummingbird." he kissed her feverish forehead.

"Okay. Maybe if we can make her feel better quickly, then there will still be time for some of our activities." Nygma agreed on taking care of her with a few reservations.

"What a cold daddy I married." Oswald sighed mocking him.

"You may be a cute 'wife', Os, but you are also an eager papa." he joked in response.

"Okay. We can continue this later, but first let´s help our nestling. Perhaps she should eat something to recover her energy first?"

"I´m not hungry, papa. And my belly is feeling weird." her tone was a nauseated one.

"Then try to stay still, hon. We don´t want you to puke." Ed instructed. "If you can´t eat now, it´s fine. Let´s try to lower your temperature after we discover how high your fever is."

For Edward´s surprise it had reached 100.4ºF, which meant that they should watch it closely.

"That´s bad news. She can have a febrile seizure." he sighed worriedly.

"A what now?" Oswald blinked.

"Children with a high temperature may develop a febrile seizure, also known as a febrile fit or febrile convulsion, most of which are not serious and may be the result of an ear infection, gastroenteritis, or a respiratory virus, like a cold in her case. Less commonly, febrile seizures may be caused by something more serious, such a meningitis, a kidney infection or pneumonia. The seizure occurs because the body temperature rises too fast, rather than because it has been sustained for a long time. There are two types of febrile seizures-" the encyclopedic knowledge Ed had was only making Oswald more concerned so he cut in.

"Ed, that´s enough! I understood already! What can we do to avoid this?"

"Lower the temperature slowly. First let´s increase her liquid intake with cold water. Stay here with her while I get some." with this, he left the room.

"Have you been feeling sick since yesterday, hummingbird?"

"No, papa. I was fine when I went to sleep. I woke up like this." she coughed again.

"Oh dear, it may be because you were exposed to the cold weather in your strolls to the park." the Mayor sighed feeling guilty for not preventing this from happening.

"Sorry, papa. If I stayed inside I wouldn´t be sick, and you and daddy wouldn´t miss work." Iris mourned.

"No, Iris. It´s no one´s fault. You are a child, your health is not strong yet. If we have to, we will spend the whole day by your side. Anything to make you get better." Oswald assured her.

"My eyes are burning." she complained.

"Okay, I will lower the lights and get a wet towel to clean your eyes."

Once Ed got back, both of them resumed the care of their 'chick'. Her temperature was lowering little by little thanks to the water and her eyes were kept fresh with the towel just like her forehead, and Gertrude´s tea recipe for sore throat was helping with the pain and the coughing. The main problem was her refusing to eat because of her stomach.

"Hon, you really don´t want to try to eat anything?" Ed caressed her hair.

"I can´t, daddy. What if I puke?"

"Then it will be Olga´s problem. But that´s not the point, hon. Can you at least have a bit of jelly? So your stomach won´t be empty?"

"Fine." she agreed finally. "What´s the flavor?"

"Does this matter now?"

"No. Not really."

"Right." he smirked at her expression. "It´s strawberry." he gave her a small pot and a spoon.

"I will do it." Oswald took them.

"Again with the spoon-feeding, Os?" Nygma sighed tired of having the same conversation.

"I like doing it and she is too weak today!" he barked. "Now, hummingbird, let´s eat! And papa will give you anything you want!" his tone changed completely to a very sweet and cheerful one. When Iris opened her mouth to speak though, he interrupted her. "Anything. EXCEPT Jim Gordon." he added and saw her busted expression. Even so, she let Oswald feed her.

"Maybe later she will accept a proper meal. And before I forget, I already told Steve to feed the bird. Since he was with her when she got it, it´s his job now." Edward commented, happy with the progress in Iris´s health despite it not being perfect yet.

"Later, daddy..." she repeated without paying attention, before yawning. "I´m feeling sleepy again."

"Then we will let you rest, right, Os?" he glanced at the Mayor who was not willing to leave.

"Right..." Cobblepot answered reluctantly after a few seconds. "And knowing your daddy, Iris, I´m pretty sure he wants me to go to work now."

"You bet, my feathered lover. She will be fine. And if she really needs us, then one of the servants can call the office." Ed explained.

"Whatever." Oswald couldn´t feel as ready to work as Ed. "Hummingbird, stay in bed as much as you need, drink your water and you can eat whatever you feel like, okay? Just ask someone to prepare it. Get better to go out again so we can do a lot of fun stuff together." he hugged their beloved child.

"Yes, papa. Have a good day at work papa and daddy." she yawned again.

"Looks like even Cory came back to rest with you." Ed saw the bird lay down on Iris´s pillow.

"He is a good friend." she said before closing her eyes. Her parents didn´t need to know that she wanted to heal soon to go together with Cory to meet Harvey and Jim again, despite the fact that the afternoon in the park made her sick in the first place.

"She will be fine, right, Eddie? Gotham can´t lose its only princess." Oswald asked once more.

"Of course, Ozzie. She is our daughter, she is strong despite her age. She will recover in no time and will again be bossing us, the servants and soon the whole city around." he kissed Oswald´s cheek.

"Can I really eat anything I want later?" Iris opened her eyes again.

"Yes. Except for candies and soda!" it was Ed´s turn to turn her down.

"No Jim and no candies. You two are no fun!" she pouted, turned to her left side and closed her eyes again.