Originally written for whumptober 2021
Prompt No. 17- Feed a cold, starve a fever
Delirium | Fever Dreams | Bees
Maedhros cursed the fragility of the Edian. They never seemed to stay fixed. Caranthir had complained often enough, but Maedhros had always brushed him off as dramatic. Watching the pitiful scene before him, Maedhros decided that Caranthir had been understating their fragility.
Elrond had caught some ailment and was currently laid up in the infirmary. He had a congested cough and a sky high fever that he was battling. Maglor had taken up residence in the low chair next to his ward's bed. In leu of a real healer, he was doing everything he could to cure the small peredhel. It wasn't helping much.
The fever caused the poor elfling to mumble deliriously. The topics varied; sometimes it was Orcs, sometimes it was Eärendil and Maedhros, still other times it was the sea. Right now it was bees.
"Bees, bees, bees," Elrond moaned with a wet hack from deep in his chest, "Bees…Coming take you Atya…"
"Mmm, the bees are coming to take me?" Maglor hummed, smoothing back Elrond's sweaty hair. How he could be endlessly patient under such circumstances was unfathomable to Maedhros.
"You and Ros." Elrond was crying inconsolably now. Maedhros almost preferred the thrashing of fevered dreams.
"Well, if you sleep now before they come, you'll be able to protect Elros and I."
"No, bees gonna come," Elrond sobbed. His distraught crying triggered a painful to listen to coughing fit. The force of the coughs brought Elrond into a fully seated position. Maglor caught his shoulders and held him up right before he keeled back over. As the fit subsided, Maglor rubbed gentle circles on Elrond's small back. When the coughing had stopped completely, Maglor laid him back down.
"You need rest little one. Sleep Elrond," Maglor infused his voice with power. The elfling, already exhausted, quickly succumbed to Maglor's command. Maglor sighed, his shoulder's drooping in exhaustion. Maedhros could see dark circles under Maglor's eyes and he could practically feel like the tense energy coming off his brother. Maedhros shook his head, far from impressed.
"You need to sleep as well Maglor," Maedhros gruffly commented, ruffling his brother's dark hair.
"No, not while he could still take a turn for the worst," Maglor shook his head in protest.
"He'll be fine. He's part edain. They're supposed to get sick and survive," Maedhros pointed out dispassionately.
"Still, I think I'll just stay here," Maglor mumbled.
"Kanafinwë-"
"Don't call me that!" Maglor's eyes flashed dangerously. That was the name their father had always used. Maglor loved it once. Now he hated it.
"I'll call you whatever I want," Maedhros snapped, "You need to sleep."
"No, I don't. If you're not here to do anything productive, then leave," Maglor groaned, scrubbing at his eyes. Maedhros shook his head once more before heading back towards his rooms. He had other things to worry about.
As Maedhros ascended the steep stairs that lead to the family quarters, he nearly tripped over Elros. Swollowing his surprise, Maedhros caught the back of the elfling's tunic in his big hand before he slip away. The elfling squeaked in fear, his eyes very big.
"And just where are you going?" Maedhros demanded. It was well past Elros' bedtime.
"Elrond gets cold at night?" Elros squirmed, trying to free himself.
"You don't get to go near your brother. Your brother is still very sick. If you catch ill as well, my brother may spontaneously combust. I saw my father do that, I would prefer not to loose my last brother to that end as well."
"He did what?" Elros' brow was scrunched up. Maedhros did a double take. He had seen that expression so many times on Maglor. It was unnerving to see it on the small child.
"Who did what?"
"Your Atar. What did he do?"
"He…" Maedhros paused, if he gave the peredhel nightmares, Maglor would kill him for sure, "He caught on fire."
"Why did he do that?" Elros cocked his head. He looked morbidly curious. Maedhros groaned. Damn children and their questions.
"It was an accident….I think."
"Oh..." Elros looked slightly scared.
"Now, when I set you down, you're going straight back to your bed," Maedhros growled. Elros shrunk back. Maedhros had figured that was a good enough answer. Apparently not. As soon as his tunic was released, Elros bolted off. With a groan, Maedhros took off after him. After a bit of searching, Maedhros found him in the healing ward, shaking Maglor awake from the light sleep he had managed to fall into by accident.
"Mae'ros says you're gonna die cause El won't get better. If I get him better, will you not die?" Elros begged.
"Elros, I'm not in imminent danger of death."
"But, Mae'ros says you're 'bout to spontanily comburt which means catch on fire. Please don't spontanily comburt," Elros explained.
Maglor raised his confused gaze to Maedhros. The red head didn't offer any explanation. In response to the noise, Elrond began to waken once more. Maglor shushed him before turning to his older brother.
"Take him back, Russ. I don't want him get sick too," Maglor sighed wearily.
"No, you can't make me go!" Elros leapt for the bed. He was caught in midair by Maglor who handed him to Maedhros. Maedhros threw Elros over his shoulder and marched out of the room. Elros screamed and kicked the whole way back to Maedhros' room. Maedhros locked the door behind him and took the key from the lock. He then tossed the elfling onto the bed. Elros sat there stunned for a minute before making a break for the door. The lock held fast.
"Let me out!" Elros screamed, pulling futilely on the handle.
"I will when your brother is better. Until then, I can't trust you to stay put."
"That's not fair!"
"Life isn't fair, anyone who tells you otherwise is either lying or trying to sell you something," Maedhros grunted.
"You're evil and I hate you!" Elros beat his small fists against Maedhros' thigh. It had absolutely no effect on the tall elf.
"You should," Maedhros intoned, though his heart hurt to say it.
"Imma get sick," Elros announced sullenly, "Then you can't keep me here."
True to form, Elros woke up the next day with a wet cough. He wasn't as sick as his brother, but he was still sick enough that Maedhros deposited him in the infirmary. After that, Maedhros neither saw nor heard from either the twins or Maglor for several days. Concern twisting his gut, Maedhros crept to the healing ward one night and peered in.
Maglor was fast asleep, slumped in a chair between the two beds. He had a hand on each of the small chests, as though to monitor their breathing. Maedhros watched them for a moment before coming to a decision. With swift and silent strides, he crossed the room to his brother. Then, taking great care not to disturb Maglor too much, Maedhro scooped him up and deposited him in another bed. Maglor sighed and burrowed deeper under the pile of blankets that Maedhros threw over him. With his brother resting more comfortably, Maedhros went to leave the room.
Before he left, one of the twins (Elrond maybe?) gave a small cry. In response, Maglor stirred slightly under the mountain of blankets, his paternal instinct kicking in the sound of a distressed child. Grumbling, Maedhros turned back to the beds. The last thing he wanted right now was for Maglor to wake up. He flopped down in the chair that Maglor had been sitting in. Reaching to the floor, Maedhros took a damp cloth from the basin of water and mopped the flushed face. The elfling quieted down.
No sooner had Maedhros started on one twin, then the other started whimpering. Maedhros turned and placed a cool cloth on other forehead. After an hour, Maedhros was sorely tempted to toss both of the elflings in the river to cool their temperatures. He glared through the window at Gil-Estel.
"Damn you Eärendil. Why did you have to be virile?" Maedhros cursed. The star didn't answer. The vigil wore on without change. The sky was starting to lighten when Maedhros gradually nodded off.
When he woke, he was startled to discover that it was already noon. He glanced towards the bed at the far side of the room. It was empty which meant Maglor was up and about. Maedhros went to stretch, but he stopped before he got far.
The second thing that he was startled (and more than a little scared) to discover was that while he was asleep, both of the twins had curled up in his lap, one under each of his arms. One (Elros?) was sucking his thumb, his snot and drool wetting Meadhros' tunic. The other (Elrond?) was hugging Maedhros' arm in a death grip. They were both like little furnaces against him (how could such small creatures create so much body heat was beyond him).
Maedhros was not entirely sure what to do. Before he could try to disentangle the twins, the one holding his arm hostage stirred slightly.
"Luvoo…" came a sleepy murmur, before the elfling fell back into a deeper sleep.
Maedhros blinked.
"I…" he hesitated, "I love you too."
His though his voice was nearly inaudible, both the twins must have heard him for they snuggled closer. Maedhros kissed both the sweaty foreheads.
"And here I was thinking that you didn't have a heart," Maglor's teasing was good-natured.
Maedhros' head shot up. He hadn't realized that his brother was in the room.
"Not a word, Kano, not a word," Maedhros growled.
"I make no promises," Maglor smirked before leaving his older brother trapped under the snoozing twins.