Tahamine stepped out of the cold end-of-November weather and through the sliding glass doors of Saint Emmanuel General Hospital. After showing her ID to the receptionist in the waiting area, she got her visitor's pass, then took the elevator up to the trauma patient unit. After the elevator reached said floor, she stepped out of the elevator and headed for the room where her son was. She opened the door and, upon seeing her still-recovering son being checked on by Dr. Jaeger, quickly entered and sat down in the chair next to Arslan's bed, taking his hand.

"Hi, Mom," Arslan said quietly, almost as if he had lost his voice. He coughed, covering his mouth, while his mother looked on with concern.

"How are you doing, Arslan?" Tahamine asked, seeing that her baby boy looked like he had caught the flu, or, at the very least, a particularly bad cold. It wouldn't have surprised the mother of three if Arslan had, indeed, fallen victim to the evil villain that is Influenza. She then saw that Dr. Jaeger was wearing a look of concern while he looked at the thermometer he held.

"Grisha?" Tahamine asked. "What's wrong?"

Dr. Jaeger turned to Tahamine and replied, "Looks like Arslan has a bad cold. He has a 101° fever."

"This sucks," Arslan said. "It was bad enough that Dad made me participate in that stupid battle and I lost Shireen's present, now I'm sick as a dog."

"I'm so sorry, honey," Tahamine said gently and gave her son a hug, thinking, 'That bastard Andragoras! Letting my baby get injured like this!' After letting go, she smiled and said, "I'm still not done punishing your father for what he put you through." This statement made Arslan shudder. Tahamine continued reassuringly, "But don't worry about Shireen's present. You didn't lose it. The Turtles bought it and gave it to me to put away for your sister."

"Thank God," Arslan said and smiled. "At least something good came out of this."

"I hope your husband realizes how lucky he is that I'm not the one doling out his punishment," Dr. Jaeger said to Tahamine. "I think it's best I still leave that to you, since you're his wife."

"Oh, I'll be sure the bastard knows, Grisha," said Tahamine.

"Mom, Dr. Jaeger," Arslan said. "Maybe Dad's been punished enough, don't you think?" He then fell into a coughing fit, which scared Tahamine, while Dr. Jaeger tried patting his back to get the coughing to subside.

After Arslan's coughing stopped, Dr. Jaeger gently told him that whether or not Andy was done being punished was up to Tahamine.

"Still..." Arslan said, worried for his father. "I mean, maybe he's learned his lesson?"

"I'll see, honey," Tahamine replied. Just then, the trio heard the door open and turned their heads toward the sound. Three teenagers, two boys and a girl, entered rather quickly.

"Hey, guys!" Arslan said, happy now that he saw who had entered his room.

"Eren, Armin, Mikasa," Dr. Jaeger said with surprise. "What are you three doing here?"

One of the boys, a short-haired brunette with gray eyes and a somewhat tanned complexion, answered the doctor. "What do you think we're doing here, Dad? We're here to see Ars, duh." This was Eren Jaeger, Dr. Jaeger's son.

"Does your mother know you're not in school?" Dr. Jaeger asked Eren. He turned towards the other two teens with Eren and asked them, "Armin, Mikasa, do your parents know you're not in school either?"

Now it was the other boy, Armin's, turn to speak up. His blond bob whipped back and forth as he shook his head no. "Well, no, they don't."

"And you're not going to tell them," the girl, Mikasa, said and glared at Dr. Jaeger as she pushed her short black hair back from her face.

"I think I will," said Dr. Jaeger. He narrowed his eyes at his son as he added, "I'll especially tell your mother, Eren Regulus Jaeger."

Eren gulped, then said, "Please don't tell Mom."

"Dr. Jaeger, we just wanted to see our sick friend," Mikasa said in defense of her, Eren and Armin having skipped school. "That's all."

"Yeah," Armin said in agreement. "Do you really have to tell our parents?"

Dr. Jaeger sighed, then relented after a couple minutes of enduring Armin's blue puppy dog eyes. He let Armin and Mikasa know that he wouldn't notify their parents of what they did, but that Eren would be grounded once his mother heard about him playing hooky. After a little session of Eren complaining about being punished, the trio sat down and started talking with Arslan.

"Ars, I can't believe you went to Black Friday," Mikasa said in a firm but concerned tone. "Don't you know what happens to people on that day?"

"Yeah," Arslan replied. "But it wasn't my choice; my dad made me go. It was either participate in Black Friday at the Atropatene Mall and recruit some friends for that event, or be grounded for the rest of the year."

"That's awful!" Armin commented.

"Yeah!" said Eren. "If that bastard AndragorASS tries to set foot in this room, I'll make him wish Thanos got him instead of me!"

"Darkseid, even," Armin added.

"By Darkseid, do you mean one of the Justice League's enemies?" Mikasa asked.

"Yup," said Armin.

"Yikes. I wouldn't want to run into him," Mikasa commented. She shuddered at the thought of Andragoras crossing paths with the villain who can be described as practically a god.

"Same with Thanos," Arslan said and started coughing again.

"Ars!" Eren, Armin and Mikasa exclaimed worriedly while Tahamine gently rubbed her son's back, Dr. Jaeger doing the same.

After Arslan's coughing subsided, Dr. Jaeger looked at the teenage trio standing by Arslan's bed. "I think Arslan needs to rest for the moment. You three can see him again either later or tomorrow."

"But, Dad!" Eren said.

"No buts, Eren," Dr. Jaeger replied firmly, leading the kids to the door. "Doctor's orders. Plus, you need to explain to your mother why you felt the need to skip school today."

"Fine," Eren said in a disappointed tone, shoulders slumped as he looked back at his bedridden friend. "I guess we'll see you tomorrow, Ars."

"See you tomorrow," Arslan said quietly. He watched as the doctor led his friends out of the room. Before the door closed, he heard Dr. Jaeger repeat something about Eren being grounded.

After a few moments, a thoughtful Tahamine spoke up. "Hey, Arslan? How would you like it if I called Daryun and the rest of your friends, so they can come see you tomorrow?"

"That would be great," Arslan said and smiled at his mother. "Thanks, Mom." His eyes started getting heavy because of his fever; he could barely keep them open.

"You're welcome, son," Tahamine said and gave Arslan a hug just as Dr. Jaeger came back in the room. "I'll be back to see you later, okay?"

"Okay," Arslan replied and fell asleep almost right away. Tahamine gave him a loving pat on the head before quietly leaving the room.