Chapter Four: Fever

Late into the night of the same day, Eriol and Tomoyo couldn't sleep. They had found refuge under a big covering tree that shaded them from the possible rain and had pulled all of their things there. Their sleeping bags were laid out next to each other. Both were processing what had happened earlier in the day and what to do tomorrow.

Eriol had especially a lot to think about. He knew that Tomoyo was counting on him to help the both of them survive and get out of this mess. He was still bothered by the fact that his magic wasn't working. Who would be powerful enough to suppress his magic? The only person he knew that was as powerful as (or even more powerful than) him was Sakura. He was sure that she wouldn't do this, unless she was under someone else's influence. Eriol was very positive that she wasn't; Li-kun would immediately notice if she was. So what could it be? He had no idea. Another thing that he had on his mind was their survival. He knew that they could survive several days on what they packed, but what after that? They would have to look for food and that would out them out in the dangerous forest again. What about their water supply? The ocean was full of salt, they obviously couldn't drink that. He would probably have to find a fresh water stream somewhere. But again, he'd have to go in the forest. Every detail of their survival was somehow depending on the perilous forest that they dare not enter again. He couldn't risk losing Tomoyo; everyone would be devastated and he himself was starting to grow on her. An additional problem was the rain. If it rained, they would be safe from animals, but they wouldn't be able to go anywhere or get anything done. He looked worriedly at the dark clouds floating around above him in the sky.

Tomoyo, on the other hand, was still digesting the fact that they were stuck somewhere with no way to contact anyone who could help. She was also thinking back to the tigers; what if the one of them were following them and planning to eat them when they where asleep? She knew that tonight, she wouldn't be able to sleep, so she might as well just plan out what to do tomorrow. She glanced at Eriol, who still had his head up towards the sky. She wanted to tell him thank you for what he was doing for her. She sat up in her sleeping bag. Her throat was hurting a bit but she still wanted to tell him. She might as well say it now.

"Eriol-kun, um, iroiro arigato…" she told him.

"Do itashimashite." he said back to her.

"Um…Eriol-kun, what is it?"

He explained about what he had thought about just a while ago and the rain. "I'm looking at the sky; it looks like it might rain… I hope not… we might have to set up something to shield ourselves from the rain…" Eriol's eyes were filled with uncertainty.

"It's okay Eriol-kun, if it does; I have a waterproof covering that I was going to use to cover up a bunch of us if it were to rain. I think we can use it as a tent."

Eriol was surprised that Tomoyo was so well-prepared. He felt a rush of admiration for her; if he was stuck somewhere with no one to contact, he would be okay as long as Tomoyo was there. Even he didn't think up of something like that!

Tomoyo, seeing Eriol's surprised face, smiled. She would have liked to continue their conversation, but she was feeling sleepy and cold so she lay back down in the sleeping bag and covered herself with a blanket.

"Everything is going to be okay, I just know it." Tomoyo reassured Eriol. "You should try to get some sleep."

Eriol smiled back to her and shifted in his sleeping bag. "Alright then, oyasumi nasai Tomoyo-chan."

"Oyasumi nasai, Eriol-kun."

In the middle of the night…

Tomoyo felt very hot in her sleep. She peeled off a coating of the several-layered blanket that she made before she went to sleep when it was really cold. She sat up. Eriol was asleep beside her. A breeze blew and it felt good on her hot skin. She stayed that way for several minutes and looked up to the sky. The rain hadn't started yet, but it looked like it was going to soon. The clouds were awash in pastel tinges. She laid back down on her covers and after a few minutes fell back to sleep.

The next morning…

Eriol woke up when he thought he heard raindrops. He rubbed his eyes and heard the sound of light raindrops intensifying. It was starting to rain a little harder. Shinjirarenai, it really is raining. He looked out to sea. The sand that was tinted in a pure and sugar-white was now a dirty sort of hue. The sea that was calm, and an emerald and azure color, was now restless with waves and white foam. The forest, a kaleidoscope of green shades, rustled with the slightly blowing wind.

Eriol could tell that it was going to get worse. He quickly brushed his teeth with some water from one of his bottles and had a small breakfast. Then he covered their bags so they wouldn't get wet in the rain. Tomoyo had given him the waterproof cover yesterday night because she thought that it was going to rain. The both of them were right about the rain. When he was done, he went to wake Tomoyo.

Tomoyo was a crimson shade in her sleeping bag. Eriol instantly became worried. He felt her forehead. It was hot! She had a fever! He quickly went to his bag a pulled out some aspirin.

"Tomoyo-chan, wake up! Wake up!"

Tomoyo woke up with difficulty and felt hot again. She saw Eriol's concerned face and at once knew why; she had a fever. Why didn't she notice before? Her mild sore throat, feeling tired, sweating under her covers. The wind was blowing again and this time she got really cold.

"Eriol-kun, tasukete! I have a fever!"

Eriol swiftly gave her the aspirin in his hand and one of her water bottles. Tomoyo swallowed the pill with water and slowly lay back down. For the first time since she woke up, she noticed the environment around her. It was raining. The scenery looked ten times uglier with the rain pouring down.

"Eriol-kun, what are we going to do? Now I'm sick and can't do anything. What if I never get better and die here! No one knows where we are…" She said hopelessly.

"Just rest Tomoyo, if you want something to eat, here." He handed her something edible and gave her a hug. "Don't be tense, you will not die! I won't let you die!"

"Iroiro arigato again Eriol-kun…" She hugged him back. He was very warm against the cold wind blowing at her.

"Don't worry Tomoyo-chan, I promised to take care of you and I'm going to keep that promise. But right now, I am going to leave for a little while and get some wood to keep us warm, especially before all the wood get too wet to start a fire. Both of us will get sick if we can't keep warm. I'll be back as soon as I can. You just go to sleep now Tomoyo-chan." Eriol let go of her and got up, then tucked her into her sleeping bag again.

"Okay…" Tomoyo said sleepily.

Tomoyo spent a lot of the day sleeping. She felt a little better, so the fever wasn't high enough to get her too sick. Eriol was relieved. Tomoyo couldn't really do anything without him so she just tried to relax and sleep.

When Eriol got back, the two discussed their circumstance and tried to make the best of it. Eriol had gotten hold of some wood, so he dug a wide but very swallow ditch and threw the wood in. Then he started the fire. It provided them with a considerable amount of warmth.

The rest of the day was extremely uneventful for there was nothing they could do in the rain. That was also a good thing because the animals were all trying to ride from the rain, too.

Eriol looked worriedly at Tomoyo. Ever since she had gotten sick, he was taking care of her like she was the most precious person in the world to him. Eriol saw that she was beginning to look a tiny bit better. Maybe the fever wasn't that bad. He was also glad that rain had scared off animals, but they were going to return.

"Get well very soon Tomoyo, the rain won't protect us forever."

TBC