AN: Hello! Thank you for waiting so patiently, my wonderful readers! First off, I'd like to apologize for my lateness in updating. It's never intentional but just happens.

Also, just so you all know, I will finish this fanfiction. I have even made an oath on my fanfiction bio page that I will finish every fanfiction that I start, no matter how long it takes. This story will, admittedly, take a while, but it will eventually get finished. It's all planned out and everything. I just have to write it. So relax. It will get finished at some point in my life.

But I still appreciate those of you who PM me to ask if I'm updating. It's refreshing to know that someone likes any of my stories enough to ask.

Review!

Sick Day

Inspired By Erin Hunter's Warriors

I sneezed.

Again.

At first it had only been the occasional one and a slight sniffle. I had felt fine other than that. And then I started to cough and got a small headache. I still didn't think it was that bad. I had been unwell before, and I'd been through worse. I'd been dead, for crying out loud. It wasn't until my head started spinning and I had collapsed in the middle of camp that I realized how bad it was.

That had been yesterday.

Today I woke up to the sight of Cinderpelt hovering over me nervously before meowing, "Scourge, I'm afraid you've got White Cough."

"Oh no. Am I dying?"

My question was less serious than it should have been, if the gray she-cat's expression was any indication, "No, you'll probably be all right. You've only got to eat what I give you, get a lot of rest, and stay hydrated."

"Hm," I frowned, doing my best to ignore the dizziness that followed the raising of my head, "Anything else?"

"Only that you'll be having someone to stay with. Mousefur is a nest away from you at the moment, sleeping. It seems she has the same thing as you." She paused, blue eyes flashing with worry, "If you need anything, just ask. I'll do my best to help you."

There was another pause before I purred, "Anything?"

"Anything," she replied hesitantly.

"Great," I allowed my head to flop down onto my paws, "Can you get me some fresh moss and feathers for my bedding? I can use some."

She nodded, "I'll ask Bramblepaw to get some."

The mention of the young tom that looked that Tigerstar made me shudder, "Can't you ask someone else?"

"Um…" her ears twitched in thought, "Rainpaw and Sootpaw are out hunting, but I think I can arrange for Sorrelpaw to get some for you, if you really want."

I nodded, "She will do."

Cinderpelt continued to look at me with worry-filled eyes before finally mewing, "Hold on, let me get you your herbs."

I waited as she had told me to and barely had enough time to finish swallowing the herbs she had given me before someone entered the den. To my surprise it was none other than Ashfur. He slipped in, pale gray fur flat and head lowered as he approached us.

"No further, Ashfur, for your own good."

The tom readily stopped at Cinderpelt's meow and swallowed uncomfortably, "Scourge… ah, well…" he looked away before blurting out, "I know it's my fault that you're sick because if we hadn't stayed where we were at my insistence then we wouldn't have fallen into the hole and we wouldn't have been stuck in there during the storm so you wouldn't have gotten the chance to get sick. I'm so, so sorry."

Unable to help it I blinked stupidly back at him. He had said all that and actually meant it. He was sincere.

"Its fine," I croaked, clearing my throat briefly before continuing, "I'll live."

Relief shone in his dark blue eyes, "That's good." He got a guilty look on his face, "I'd stay longer but I have to go on a hunting patrol. I only barely managed to slip in now."

I flicked my black tail dismissively, "That's alright. You have a job to do."

Ashfur purred, "Alright then. Bye Scourge. Bye Cinderpelt. I hope you get better soon."

Without another flick of his tail he was gone.

"So…" Cinderpelt mewed after a moment, "You took my advice about being nice?"

"Nope," I yawned, "We were rude to each other and, somehow, that made us closer."

She stared, "You're kidding."

"No."

"I don't believe you."

I would have told her I was telling the truth but at that moment a wracking cough tore through me, making my throat ache and waking Mousefur up with a snort. She glared at us and growled a little before she hissed roughly.

"Be quiet, would you? I'm trying to sleep!"

"Sorry," Cinderpelt apologized and I yawned.

Blinking drowsily, I mewed, "Sleeping sounds like a good plan."

"Of course it does," the she-cat retorted, "We're sick!" She curled up for barely a moment before complaining, "Cinderpelt, can you get me something to make the nest softer? Its uncomfortable and something's digging into my side."

The gray she-cat nodded in concern, "Of course, right away."

She slipped from the den- presumably to get something for Mousefur's nest- and something inside my head suddenly clicked. Mousefur complained and Cinderpelt hurried away to do what she wanted. I knew that Mousefur and I were Cinderpelt's patients and were to naturally be made a fuss of by her because of that, but I couldn't help but notice that it appeared to keep her mind busy from constantly worrying over things she had no control of.

She returned, meowing, "I sent Sorrelpaw to get some new moss and feathers for both of your nests. She'll be back before long."

I barely heard her, my mind still moving slowly but determinedly along my current path of thought. I didn't enjoy being treated like a patient, but I knew it was undeniable when I was one. So why not accept it and use it to my advantage? It would give Cinderpelt something to focus on. Make her feel like she wasn't as useless as she seemed to believe she was in the last moon.

And yet, in the back of my head I knew I shouldn't complain when she already worked so hard. But at the same time I knew it would occupy her mind with something other than Firestar's and Sandstorm's wellbeing for the first time in a moon. It would occupy her mind with me instead. That was the deciding argument and before I knew it I had shaken off all my drowsiness, opened my jaws, and began to meow…

~oOo~

Exhausted.

I was completely and utterly exhausted.

For the last day I had been doing nothing but catering to Scourge's and Mousefur's every desire. I was a medicine cat and they were my patients so I was expecting to have to do a lot for them, but not as much as I had been doing. It seemed like every time I finished doing one thing for one of them the other wanted me to do something entirely different for them. It was completely maddening! Even now my only moment of respite was because I had been allowed to step out for something to eat.

"You look awful."

My tired blue eyes glanced up at Graystripe, who stood nearby with a squirrel in his jaws, and chuckled weakly, "Thanks. I needed that."

He purred and lay down next to me, shoving the squirrel closer in a clear offer to share with me, "You know what I mean."

With a grateful blink I took a bite out of the squirrel and chewed slowly, "I'm just really tired. Scourge and Mousefur have just been so demanding." I paused to swallow, "I don't even know who complains more; Scourge or Mousefur!"

"Really?" His eyes widened, "I expected as much from Mousefur, but Scourge? I never got the impression that he'd like to be looked after like a kit."

"Neither did I."

With my dull reply we fell into silence, both slowly eating the squirrel we shared. We heard many of our Clan mates as they entered and exited camp, their numerous conversations blending together in a calming mix of unintelligible sounds. I noticed vaguely that the air had the chill of late leaf-fall.

"Cinderpelt," I blinked back into awareness and turned to Graystripe, who had just finished his half of the squirrel and was standing up, "Are you okay with Scourge? If you want someone else can watch him for a while after he's better. After all, you've already been taking care of him for several moons."

"No," I meowed instantly before hurriedly explaining, "He's not that bad, and after he's better he'll be back to his usual self."

The gray tom muttered, "And that's better how?"

I continued hesitantly, "Besides… I've gotten rather fond of his company."

Graystripe gave me an arch look, shaking his head soon after with an amused chuckle, "Very well, you can keep him." He stretched leisurely, "Just remember that you are allowed to get a break from him every once in a while."

"I will."

I purred as he left, feeling better than I had before and looking a little more brightly to the future.

~oOo~

Even though my original goal had only been to distract Cinderpelt from her many concerns over Firestar and Sandstorm it had somehow turned into an unofficial contest with Mousefur over who could whine, complain, and generally be the most annoying. Perhaps it was just because the dusky brown she-cat wasn't used to anyone being able to rival her when it came to complaints, but it actually ended up getting rather competitive between us.

Finally, when we had taken pity on Cinderpelt and allowed her to get something to eat at the fresh-kill pile she turned to me and scowled, "Why in StarClan are you being so tough on her? Always complaining and whining for something."

"I believe you were doing the same," I scoffed.

She flicked her tail dismissively, "Everyone knows I'm like that and she no doubt expected me to grumble a lot. It's you that's not making any sense. What are you up to, Scourge?"

For a moment I stared at her, contemplating whether or not I should tell her the truth before slowly meowing, "You really want to know?"

"I wouldn't be asking if I didn't want to know."

Ignoring her biting tone I sighed in a raspy way, "I'm just trying to keep her from constantly worrying herself over Firestar and Sandstorm. It seems the best way to do that would be to keep her distracted with other things… like taking care of two really fussy patients."

Mousefur stared at me blankly before finally stating, "What?"

"I-" I coughed briefly before trying again, "I didn't slur my words, did I?"

"So you're telling me," she frowned, "that you're doing this for Cinderpelt's own good?" I nodded in exasperation and she frowned, "What are you really up to?"

My tail thumped the ground in agitation, "Nobody ever believes that I can have good intentions. I assure you, this is because I like her as a cat and am grateful to her for standing up for me when nobody else would. I have no evil purposes behind this whatsoever."

She scrutinized me for a moment longer, slowly meowing, "If you're being truthful then I thank you. Cinderpelt is always looking out for everyone, so it's nice that somebody is looking over her for once."

Things relaxed between us after that and we began to talk. Even after Cinderpelt returned from her meal we continued to chat about various things, only stopping when Mousefur went to sleep.

After we listened to Mousefur's soft snoring for a while Cinderpelt quietly mewed, "It's time for you to get some sleep, too. You should have been asleep sooner than this, actually."

A small, embarrassingly kit-like sneeze escaped me and I meowed to the gray she-cat, "Alright, but I have one last request today." She blinked, tilting her head quizzically before I added in slow discomfort, "Could you… curl up against me? Just until I fall asleep," Feeling uncomfortable in my annoying moment of weakness I hurriedly added, "I'm only a little cold."

She gave a small purr of amusement, "Of course, Scourge."

Silently she sat in the nest I was in, curling up so her warm back was pressed comfortingly against mine. I felt even drowsier than I had all day, and before I knew it I was sound asleep.

AN: Aw… isn't Scourge so spoiled? ^_^