Cuddles for the Ill

AN: Wrote this while I had a bad cold and horrible fever months ago, but only went back to it just now. I might write additional chapters if I get inspired again.

"How are you feeling?" she asked. The redhead gripped his head with both hands and slowly made the effort to sit up. A blue-skinned hand on his back coupled with his own weak efforts was enough to get him upright. He let out a loud groan that seemed to stretch on forever.

"Ugh…" he moaned. He sat there for a moment or two with his head in his hands and the tiefling beside him looking on concerned.

"Like my head is goink to explode," he finally revealed.

"Oh…ummmmm….did you want me to try and do something about that? I mean I've never like tried to do something like that before and I'm not..uh, sure how it would all work and stuff, but I can definitely try something," she offered. Even with his head lowered into his hands, she could still see a slight smile grace his lips for the briefest of moments which only caused her own lips to quirk upwards as well.

"You are a good friend, Chester." His Zemnian accent was noticeably thicker, and Jester attributed that to his illness. She gave him a warm smile that he didn't see. With one of her hands, she brushed some of the long strands away from his face and unwittingly her cold tiefling fingers grazed the side of his face as well. He moaned and seemed to lean into her touch.

"Cayleb?"

"Zat feels gut…" he trailed off. She chuckled. Her Zemnian friend sure was weird and funny at times.

"Anything else hurt?"

"Mmmm hmmm…" he hummed. He cleared his throat before continuing.

"I'm fery sore and restless. It feels as zough I hafe some broken ribs, but I know zat is not zee case. I just feel fery achy…" he complained.

"Oh, poor Cayleb! That sounds awful." He nodded. She wrapped her arm around his much smaller body and pulled him in tight. He relaxed into her torso and laid his head on her shoulder. She breathed in the scent of his auburn hair as she laid her head down on his briefly. She let out a contented sigh. She ran her fingers up and down his arm while her tail ran its course over his leg. He moved underneath her as he heaved a very violent sigh.

She squeezed him tighter for the briefest of moments to avoid hurting him. He nestled himself into her body and just allowed himself to be loved for the moment. Jester wondered, not for the first time, if Caleb was secretly a cat as he snuggled in closer than she thought possible. She couldn't help smiling and blushing as she thought of being this close with one of her crushes.

She would never tell him, of course. He had made it very clear a long time ago in the gnomish city of Hupperdook and especially in the pirate town of Darktow that his heart already belonged to someone else. It broke her heart to think about it, but she also only wanted the best for her wizard friend. He deserved it, she knew that, even if he didn't believe it too.

"Did you fall asleep on me?" she asked when she noticed how quiet her companion had become. She glanced down, but all she could see was his copper-colored hair. It was getting long, and she was actually a little jealous. His hair was longer than hers by a fair bit. And he didn't take care of it the way she took care of hers, but it somehow still stayed luscious and soft. The tiefling wasn't sure how he could be so lucky, but she was sure that she would take the time to braid and style his hair with or without his permission.

He didn't answer her, and it didn't take long before Caleb's breathing slowed to a crawl. She could feel his easy weight leaning upon her as if she were nothing more than a bed or his comfortable reading chair back home. She would find him there often after a long day of reading and studying curled up like a common housecat. A soft purr-like snore almost made her sputter as she realized that the sound was coming from the Zemnian lying in her arms. She cooed with delight and squeezed him again.

"Oh, Cayleb! Did you actually fall asleep on me? You are soooooo cuuuuute!" she excitedly whispered. She continued petting his arm and leg with her hand and tail respectively. She could feel the leg that Caleb's body was resting on beginning to become numb and tingly, but she couldn't bring herself to even attempt to shift him. She began to hum a song to herself that she wasn't quite sure the name of. A local at the tavern had been singing it earlier in the day, and the tune had been stuck in her head ever since. Between her exhaustion from the day's events and the calming monotony of humming and stroking her charge, sleep found her not very long after.

That was how Nott and the others found them when they went to check on them a few hours later. Nott cooed in delight and went about the task of taking a blanket from the bed and awkwardly draping it over them. She couldn't quite make it all the way around, but with Yasha's silent assistance it was eventually wrapped around them both. Beau snickered from behind her hands, even as she secretly wished that she were Caleb at that moment.

"Didn't realize he was so sick," Fjord whispered. Caduceus nodded.

"I don't think any of us did. He's an odd one, Caleb. He probably didn't want us worrying about him, so; I don't think he wanted us to know about his illness," Caduceus rumbled. He had known for a few days that something was bothering the skinny redhead, but he hadn't been sure as to what it was until he had nearly collapsed after a particularly eventful battle.

"We should let them sleep," Yasha said quietly as she joined the two men. Fjord nodded.

"Yeah, but maybe we should put them in bed proper," he raised his voice questioningly.

"That'll just wake them up," Beau pointed out, "I say just leave 'em be. If they wake up stiff as a board in the morning that's on them."

"That sounds a little mean," Nott piped up. Beau shrugged.

"It would probably be best to move them to the bed, though. They'll sleep easier that way," Caduceus said. He started walking out of the room.

"Where ya going, Deucy?" Fjord asked as he turned to watch him leave.

"I'm gonna put some tea on and make something for Caleb to try and eat when he wakes up." Fjord nodded. Nott eagerly followed with an offer to assist which the firlbog agreed to with a bit of reluctance. It wasn't a surprise to the Nein, as the quiet man was very picky about who was allowed in his kitchen.

"Beau, why don't you help Yasha put them to bed proper?" the half-orc asked. Beau shrugged with a sigh.

"Alright, let's do this." The pair of strong women easily made quick work of moving the skinny man back into bed. To their satisfaction, he didn't even stir. When they moved on to their blue-skinned friend, she moaned and started waking up as they struggled to both lift and twist her into position.

"Wha…?"

"Shh…Go back to sleep, Jessie. It's okay," Beau soothed. Slowly, the cleric's eyes closed again, and the pair managed to set her into bed beside their sick wizard. Once under the covers, she rolled over and draped an arm over his skinny form to which he let out a contented moan. He snuggled up closer to her much, much colder body. The tiefling smiled and sighed into his chest before sleep took her again.