AN: sorry about the horribly short chapter...
Lauren woke up to her alarm, but her limbs felt so heavy that she couldn't move. She tried to sit up but a wave of dizziness washed over her. She fell limp and closed her eyes. The first cough that was torn from her body was loud and rasping. The second one made her curl up in pain.
"Lauren?! Are you okay?" Sakura ran over to the other girl.
"Do I sound okay?" Lauren whispered in a raspy voice. It felt like someone was sticking needles in her throat.
Sakura ran to get a cold cloth from the bathroom to put on Lauren's burning forehead and one of their hall mates, Miyuki, poked her head in.
"Tell me," Lauren choked out, "weather..."
Miyuki blinked and looked out the window at the snow flakes flitting from the sky. "It's snowing really hard."
"I'm allergic..." Lauren curled up with another cough.
Sakura, who had entered again, raised an eyebrow. "To snow? But how have you lived in-"
"To the first snow of the year. I'm helplessly sick for a day." Lauren closed her eyes and suppressed another fit of coughs. She slowly drifted off to sleep.
Sakura gazed around. "Where is her school stuff?" she asked Miyuki. "I'll go to her classes for her."
"It's over here..." Miyuki beckoned to Sakura.
***
That afternoon in chorus Sakura went up to Touya. "Konnichiwa nii-chan."
"Where's Lauren?" Touya asked at once, glancing around with his sharp eyes.
"She is extremely sick... If she weren't magical I'd say she's dying." Sakura told him gravely. "I'm going to her classes for her."
"Why the hell aren't you with her nursing her?" Touya demanded in a fierce whisper.
Sakura smiled. "She told me it's just her allergies kicking in. She'll be fine." She put a hand on Touya's shoulder. "Look, visit her after you teach the class."
"No, I'm going now!" Touya started to walk away, but Sakura grabbed his tie and held him in place.
"Just teach the class. I'll go back and stay with her, okay? So don't worry your little head off, kay?"
Touya nodded a little uncertainly and began to teach. "Okay, take out your music."
"Sensei?" one man asked. "Who was that girl?"
"She's my crazy sister," Touya rolled his eyes.
***
Lauren opened her eyes slightly when Touya came in. He sat down on her futon and rubbed her back.
"How are you feeling, k-" he stopped and glanced at Sandi, who was sitting at the desk, and at Miyuki, who was sitting in the chair in the corner.
They both smiled at him and pretended to zip their lips.
"I already know, and nobody is going to find out because of me," Sandi assured him.
Miyuki got up to shut the door.
"Arigato." Touya turned back to Lauren. "Are you feeling any better?"
Lauren shook her head weakly and tried to hold back another of her rasping coughs, but the effort was in vain.
Touya gasped and stared at her. "You need a doctor!"
"I'll," Lauren took a deep breath and tried to move. The latter attempt was unsuccessful. "I'll be fine tomorrow."
Touya lay down next to her and pulled her into his embrace. "If you're not in class I'm going to make you go to the doctor. In the meantime I'm going to call your parents to tell them you're sick."
Sandi handed him Lauren's address book without a word and he found the phone. He dialed her home number, savoring the numbers and enjoying the fact that it was another part of the woman he loved.
"Moshi moshi, Trestena speaking."
"Trestena-sama, this is one of your daughter's teachers. I was just calling to tell you that Lauren is extremely ill."
"You're getting your first snow there, too?" Trestena asked knowingly.
"Yes, how did you know? Aren't you the least be worried about Lauren?" Touya was slightly annoyed that Juniper's own mother didn't seem to care about how sick she was.
"Well, of course I worry to hear about her being so sick, but it really isn't that serious. When it snows for the first time every year, the snow magic that has been built up in the clouds all comes down with it. This affects Lauren's magic quite badly and drains her for a day or two. The reason why your sister hasn't gotten sick is because she has got Kero-sama and Yue-sama to look after her and to protect her from sickness. And it is partly the snow spirits who are angry with Lauren for disliking snow."
Touya swallowed loudly, trying to digest all the information she had just thrown at him. "Wow, you know a lot... But how? How do you know Sakura and me?"
"Oh, and will you go tell her that Emilio and I will come visit soon? Thanks, bye!" Trestena hung up without waiting for an answer.
"Right..." Touya turned off the phone. He glanced over at Lauren's limp form. She suddenly moved and sat up against the wall.
"You have to sing me a song, Touya, and put power in your voice... If you want me to heal quickly, that's what you need to do. Thanks for calling my mother that took the spell off my mind so I could remember how to heal myself. I'm sure she knew that."
Sakura, who had been silent for awhile, stood up and asked Sandi and Miyuki to leave the room. They obliged, and Sakura pulled out her key. She said the spell and then pulled out the song card. "Here, this should help. SONG!" The card emerged and gean to sing a little tune. After it was over and the card and key were back to their original hiding places, Lauren shook out her limbs from her sitting position.
"There, now all I have to do is go to sleep now and not wake up until tomorrow morning." Lauren fell over and went to sleep on the spot.
Touya got her back into bed and covered her up. "Good, she looks a bit better now. Oh, I forgot to give her the message about Trestena and Emilio coming to visit... whoever Emilio is..."
Lauren woke up to her alarm, but her limbs felt so heavy that she couldn't move. She tried to sit up but a wave of dizziness washed over her. She fell limp and closed her eyes. The first cough that was torn from her body was loud and rasping. The second one made her curl up in pain.
"Lauren?! Are you okay?" Sakura ran over to the other girl.
"Do I sound okay?" Lauren whispered in a raspy voice. It felt like someone was sticking needles in her throat.
Sakura ran to get a cold cloth from the bathroom to put on Lauren's burning forehead and one of their hall mates, Miyuki, poked her head in.
"Tell me," Lauren choked out, "weather..."
Miyuki blinked and looked out the window at the snow flakes flitting from the sky. "It's snowing really hard."
"I'm allergic..." Lauren curled up with another cough.
Sakura, who had entered again, raised an eyebrow. "To snow? But how have you lived in-"
"To the first snow of the year. I'm helplessly sick for a day." Lauren closed her eyes and suppressed another fit of coughs. She slowly drifted off to sleep.
Sakura gazed around. "Where is her school stuff?" she asked Miyuki. "I'll go to her classes for her."
"It's over here..." Miyuki beckoned to Sakura.
***
That afternoon in chorus Sakura went up to Touya. "Konnichiwa nii-chan."
"Where's Lauren?" Touya asked at once, glancing around with his sharp eyes.
"She is extremely sick... If she weren't magical I'd say she's dying." Sakura told him gravely. "I'm going to her classes for her."
"Why the hell aren't you with her nursing her?" Touya demanded in a fierce whisper.
Sakura smiled. "She told me it's just her allergies kicking in. She'll be fine." She put a hand on Touya's shoulder. "Look, visit her after you teach the class."
"No, I'm going now!" Touya started to walk away, but Sakura grabbed his tie and held him in place.
"Just teach the class. I'll go back and stay with her, okay? So don't worry your little head off, kay?"
Touya nodded a little uncertainly and began to teach. "Okay, take out your music."
"Sensei?" one man asked. "Who was that girl?"
"She's my crazy sister," Touya rolled his eyes.
***
Lauren opened her eyes slightly when Touya came in. He sat down on her futon and rubbed her back.
"How are you feeling, k-" he stopped and glanced at Sandi, who was sitting at the desk, and at Miyuki, who was sitting in the chair in the corner.
They both smiled at him and pretended to zip their lips.
"I already know, and nobody is going to find out because of me," Sandi assured him.
Miyuki got up to shut the door.
"Arigato." Touya turned back to Lauren. "Are you feeling any better?"
Lauren shook her head weakly and tried to hold back another of her rasping coughs, but the effort was in vain.
Touya gasped and stared at her. "You need a doctor!"
"I'll," Lauren took a deep breath and tried to move. The latter attempt was unsuccessful. "I'll be fine tomorrow."
Touya lay down next to her and pulled her into his embrace. "If you're not in class I'm going to make you go to the doctor. In the meantime I'm going to call your parents to tell them you're sick."
Sandi handed him Lauren's address book without a word and he found the phone. He dialed her home number, savoring the numbers and enjoying the fact that it was another part of the woman he loved.
"Moshi moshi, Trestena speaking."
"Trestena-sama, this is one of your daughter's teachers. I was just calling to tell you that Lauren is extremely ill."
"You're getting your first snow there, too?" Trestena asked knowingly.
"Yes, how did you know? Aren't you the least be worried about Lauren?" Touya was slightly annoyed that Juniper's own mother didn't seem to care about how sick she was.
"Well, of course I worry to hear about her being so sick, but it really isn't that serious. When it snows for the first time every year, the snow magic that has been built up in the clouds all comes down with it. This affects Lauren's magic quite badly and drains her for a day or two. The reason why your sister hasn't gotten sick is because she has got Kero-sama and Yue-sama to look after her and to protect her from sickness. And it is partly the snow spirits who are angry with Lauren for disliking snow."
Touya swallowed loudly, trying to digest all the information she had just thrown at him. "Wow, you know a lot... But how? How do you know Sakura and me?"
"Oh, and will you go tell her that Emilio and I will come visit soon? Thanks, bye!" Trestena hung up without waiting for an answer.
"Right..." Touya turned off the phone. He glanced over at Lauren's limp form. She suddenly moved and sat up against the wall.
"You have to sing me a song, Touya, and put power in your voice... If you want me to heal quickly, that's what you need to do. Thanks for calling my mother that took the spell off my mind so I could remember how to heal myself. I'm sure she knew that."
Sakura, who had been silent for awhile, stood up and asked Sandi and Miyuki to leave the room. They obliged, and Sakura pulled out her key. She said the spell and then pulled out the song card. "Here, this should help. SONG!" The card emerged and gean to sing a little tune. After it was over and the card and key were back to their original hiding places, Lauren shook out her limbs from her sitting position.
"There, now all I have to do is go to sleep now and not wake up until tomorrow morning." Lauren fell over and went to sleep on the spot.
Touya got her back into bed and covered her up. "Good, she looks a bit better now. Oh, I forgot to give her the message about Trestena and Emilio coming to visit... whoever Emilio is..."
