Author's Note: Yeah, they um…had fun. It's oblivious.
Tainted Feathers
Chapter 5-Meet My Folks (Not to be confused with the NBC show)
5:57 A.M.
Zoë:
I stirred from the bunches of blankets I was buried under and stretched. My arms ached somewhat, due to the fact that Kuja was an aggressive lover. And by aggressive, I mean he nibbled on certain areas of my body until they were sore. What a night that was! I patted the sheets on my left side, expecting Kuja to be curled up there, but he wasn't.
"Kuja?" I called.
"What is it, my dear?" came the answer.
I rubbed my eyes and drew the covers up around my body.
"Where are you?"
Kuja walked into the living room and set a tray full of food down on the blankets. I gasped, amazed at how good the food smelled.
"You…cook?" I asked.
"Yeah."
"But I thought you couldn't cook."
Kuja snorted and picked up a little piece of meat off of the tray.
"A lot of the dishes I know can't be made on earth. So I tried something out of the cookbooks near the stove. It's sausage, I believe."
He put the piece in my mouth gently with his slender finger. I chewed on it thoughtfully and sure enough, it was sausage.
"Not bad for your first cooking lesson," I commented.
For the first time ever, Kuja beamed. His eyes twinkled with hidden delight and satisfaction. I had truly made his day.
"How are you feeling?"
I struck another piece of meat in my mouth and chewed it thoughtfully.
"You should not be so rough next time."
Kuja kissed me on the cheek and rubbed my arms softly. I tried hard not to wince at his action. Kuja probably felt some strain from last night as well. (I gave him something to be tired about.) Other than that, he was a gentle lover. I couldn't believe that someone his size could be so strong.
"I apologize," Kuja whispered.
I shook my head.
"Why apologize? You told me not to apologize for a good thing."
Kuja blinked.
"So I did."
I pulled him down into the pile of blankets and covered him up. I couldn't help but notice that he felt unusually warm. I wanted to comment on it, but I decided not to. He felt like that last night and he seemed normal enough. I sighed and laid my head on his chest. Kuja didn't move, which was surprising. Maybe he was tired or something.
Kuja:
I admit I was tired and pushed well beyond the limits of my physical endurance. It wasn't that I was weak or anything…I was just tired. I admit that I was a bit frightened and concerned about my health. Who knows what Garland could do to me from Gaia? Or maybe he's already done it. I watched Zoë lay her head across my slender exposed chest and sighed. Maybe I was just being paranoid.
"Kuja, you know you can tell me what's wrong."
Zoë's voice cut through my trance and made me shake somewhat.
"I'm fine, Zoë," I said sternly.
"But you feel like you have a temperature and your breathing is swallow and ragged. That sounds like a problem."
"That's normal."
She rolled her eyes and got to her feet. Her robes fell all around her body delicately, hiding her greater features from view.
"Wait there," She said sternly.
Like I was going to listen to her. Moments later, Zoë came back in brandishing a wand-like object with a metal end. What the hell was that? I wondered inwardly. My first guess was that it was a thermometer. But since when does thermometers come like that? Automatically, my left eye twitched violently at the thought of where that blasted object would go. Zoë noticed my less than happy look and smiled.
"Don't worry. It's not going to go anywhere but in your mouth. Now be patient while I stick it under your tongue."
I stopped myself from whining and opened my mouth. Zoë stuck the thermometer in gently and pressed a small button at the top. It began to beep somewhat as I sat there. I wanted to know what to do now since this was a completely new experience. Zoë laughed.
"Be glad you aren't a real cat or dog. Otherwise you would have this same thermometer up in a place…"
No need for visuals, Zoë. I shuddered at the thought of it regardless. The thermometer beeped one last time and fell silent. Zoë took it out of my mouth and held it up to her face.
"Kuja, you'll have to stay inside today," She said sternly.
"Why?"
"You have a temperature of 103.2, Kuja. That's really dangerous. I'll have to lower your temperature before doing anything else today."
I shrugged. Fever wouldn't keep me down.
"I'll be fine. I've never had to worry about sickness before. Don't waste your time."
Zoë rolled her eyes.
"You will do as I say."
Like hell I will.
"I told you I'm fine, Zoë," I snapped.
She rolled her eyes again.
"End of discussion."
12:18 P.M.
Zoë:
I actually succeeded in getting Kuja to go to sleep again. I was surprised when he refused to let me take care of him. I couldn't believe he was so stubborn. But I took that out after a bowl of hot soup. Hot soup works every time, heh, heh. I tucked him in gently, making sure to make it so that he could breathe and stay cool. He still felt hot, but it seemed like he was doing better. The phone rang moments later, startling me out of my train of thought. I hope it wasn't Lena who was calling. Kuja nor I needed the tension. I picked it up and pressed the talk button.
"Hello?"
"Zoë, dear, how are you?"
I paused for a second, recognizing the voice as my mother's.
"Mother, it's good to hear from you," I said carefully.
"When are you coming over our house, dear? You know I want to meet that guy of yours."
But Kuja wasn't well. I couldn't force the angel to get up when it was sick. I would have to say no. But if I did, they would come over here.
"Ah, I'll stop by today. Just give me a hour or so."
I hung up the phone and stared at Kuja's prone sleeping form. Getting him up and out of the house would be a challenge. But it can be done, I thought as I pulled Kuja up into a sitting position. He groaned and opened one hazy blue eye.
"What's wrong?"
His speech was slurred with the after effects of the cough medicine I laced his food with.
"We have to go somewhere," I answered.
Another eye opened and a sleepy yawn escaped his mouth. The feathers in his hair fell in front of his eyes gently and then fell back.
"Hopefully not the hospital," He hissed.
"No, maybe it's worse than a hospital. Heh, it's my parent's house."
Kuja raised an eyebrown.
"Your parents want to see me?"
I nodded.
"Yeah, I suppose. Anyways, do you feel up to it?"
"It's hard to shake of this exhaustion, but I am an actor. I shall play my part to the fullest."
I wasn't sure if I was supposed to be happy about that. Sometimes Kuja 'overacted'. I helped him up to his feet and steadied him. Kuja yawned and rubbed his forehead gently.
"Thanks, Zoë," He whispered.
"Do you need help with anything?"
"Uh…"
1:15 P.M.
Zoë:
Bathing Kuja was a genuinely humbling experience. No one couldn't tell him that he wasn't hot and that he wasn't a male when naked. Surprisingly enough, he almost threw up in the bathwater. And what was even more surprising was the fact that he was almost dignified when he emptied the contents of his stomach in a trashcan. Now he was wide-awake and in a pair of thin pants and a thin shirt. I made sure to comb his fine feathery hair back gently into a ponytail and put a small amount of makeup on his face.
"Feeling better?" I asked, kissing him on the cheek lightly.
Kuja sighed and rubbed his face.
"I'll live. Now let's go."
I nodded and grabbed my keys. I was glad when Kuja didn't suggest flying. I wasn't sure he was up to flying with a very upset stomach. I opened the door and ushered him out into the lukewarm air. He swayed for a second and then systematically threw up into my garden. I ignored his hacking and closed and locked the door behind me. I went down the steps and got into my car. Kuja wiped his mouth and got into the air beside me.
"Kuja, if you don't feel well enough to go—"
"Enough, Zoë. I'll be fine."
Moments later
Kuja:
Although I was still very sick, I was glad to be out in the open air at Zoë's parent's house. This was important to her so I couldn't ruin it by throwing up all over the place. So when we reached the front door, my stomach was back up to rumbling again. Zoë rung the doorbell and placed a comforting hand on my shoulder. The door swung open slowly and a small, thin, aged looking woman appeared.
"Zoë! You look quite good! I see you've been taking care of yourself. Oh and who is this?"
I blinked at how fast this woman talked. It was almost hard for me to keep up. Nevertheless, an actor must perform…
"Mother, this is Kuja. Kuja meet Mother," Zoë said calmly.
"Pleased to meet you, Mrs. Tsukikage," I answered politely.
Zoë's mother eyed me from head to toe warily. I held my breath as bile began to rise in my throat.
"You are rather unique in your…style," She commented.
"I try to be," I said dryly.
It was becoming harder and harder to hold down the bile. Zoë noticed my discomfort and tired to lead me away from her mother, but it was too late. I ended up throwing up all over her shirt and stumbling backwards slightly. Zoë managed to catch me before the world spun into darkness. Darkness that was all too familiar…
Author's Note: Sorry for Kuja being all sick, but I had to get back into the scheme of things.