Disclaimer: I don't own Narnia or any characters you may recognize from the books or the movies, I wish I did but I don't... I also don't own the Narnian Calendar. It belongs to Elecktrum who was kind enough to let me borrow it for my story. Her own stories are awesome and you should go read them too.

Summary: Not all shields look as we expected... Not all shields are physical...

Chapter Seven

23 Yule 1001

There are few things worse than waking up right before a long-anticipated event and realizing that you're sick. Being sick right before Christmas...ugh, it just figured that I would be sick for my first Christmas in Narnia. Why? Because Murphy hated me, end of story. And, it wasn't a simple cold or a stomach bug. Nor, could it be blamed on Oreius' evil training schedule (believe me, he's an evil genius when it comes to devising punishment disguised as training...I would know) because he had returned the start time of my training to fifth hour this past week and he's been releasing the Kings and myself from training early all week. No, this particular illness was much worse than exhaustion from training or a cold or a stomach bug. I rarely get sick, which is a good thing, because when I do it's horrible. I mean, I can go two years without suffering so much as a sniffle (unless I was caught in an icy deluge from a backfiring prank) and then out of nowhere I'll be laid flat by what's best described as a non-contagious flu for about a week (unless I did something that agitated my health and caused a relapse).

That morning I knew as soon as I opened my eyes that my tentative hopes for experiencing my first normal Christmas in years had been dashed. But, then I talked myself into ignoring how hot I felt, the pounding in my head and behind my eyes, and how much my hands were shaking as I forced myself to get out of bed. As soon as I stood, the entire room swam and I had to cling to one of the bed posts to keep from falling flat on my face, but being the determined (Oreius and Alithia have since informed me that I was just being stubborn to the point of stupidity) individual, I staggered my way to the door. I opened it and managed to make my way to lean against the back of my settee as I stared at the water clock, which informed me that I had already missed training by over two hours. Well, I preferred to face the wrath of Oreius for missing training than to face the combined wrath of Alithia and Oreius because I staggered my way to the training yard and then promptly keeled over...I could just imagine how well that would go over with them.

I decided I should just crawl back into bed and wait for the worst to pass me by before I even thought about trying to leave my chambers. As it was, I wasn't completely sure how much longer I could last on my feet. I managed to make it back to my bedroom with no incidents of note and I was even able to freshen up in the bathroom before Murphy decided to play with me again. I stumbled my way to the bathroom door and had just set foot in my bedroom when the entire room did a flip-flop and I sent a vase shattering against the floor, while I tumbled backward into the bathroom until I came to a stop against the tub (with the obligatory hit to the back of the head).

I closed my eyes as I waited for the pounding in my head to lessen just a smidge before I tried moving again. I must have started to doze off because the next thing I knew there was someone shaking my shoulder and saying my name...loudly and repeatedly. I cracked my eyes open and had to blink because I was greeted with a sight of two very concerned-looking Oreius...I knew that couldn't be right. Fortunately for my sanity, after I closed my eyes and opened them again all I saw was one very concerned-looking Oreius, especially since I felt one Kentauri was more than enough. Oreius was leaning over me and still watching me warily (kind of like he thought I was going to break into a million pieces at any moment) when he snapped an order, "Rupert, find Alithia and be quick about it."

Oreius reached out and checked the back of my head, stilling his fingers instantly when I hissed in pain as he grazed over the lump. After establishing there was a lump and it actually wasn't bleeding (even though it hurt like all get out), I think I turned green because an instant later Oreius had shoved a large bowl into my hands and then held my hair out of the way as I surrendered to the sudden wave of nausea that swept over me. That was the second time I had been sick in his presence…the little dignity I had managed to keep after the first time promptly fled. I gasped out a pathetic-sounding apology and he just shook his head as he removed the bowl. I should have just stayed in bed. "Yes, you should have, Katerina Alambiel." Oreius paused to consider me before continuing, "You look horrible."

I was sure I did, considering that I had a large purple bruise on my left temple from crashing into the tree the day before and if I looked anywhere near as bad as I felt, but still there are some things you just shouldn't say to a woman. I packed as much sarcasm into my voice as possible as I responded, "Oh, thank you."

Of course, sarcasm didn't do me much good as Oreius just ignored it. Spoilsport. Instead, he looked impatiently over his shoulder for the still-absent Alithia before turning back to me. "Can you walk back to the bed?"

I nodded and used the tub to lever myself up. I got to my feet, but only for a moment before the entire room swam and then flip-flopped, which was followed by my legs giving out. Oreius managed to catch me before I hit the floor, but we both knew I wasn't going to be able to move an inch under my own power much less make it to the bed. What a way to spend the morning before Christmas Eve, sick as a dog and weak as a newborn kitten (there's a joke in there somewhere, I know it). Oreius easily scooped me up and carried me to my bed, once he had me settled, he pulled the sheets up to my waist and then he brushed some of the hair escaping from my braid out of my face. I felt so terrible that I barely registered the fact that he froze when his fingers grazed my skin, but I did hear a faint inquiry that I assumed was from Alithia and his low reply, "She's burning up."

After that, everything became a blur and I'm not certain of all my memories. However, I did remember the flashes of worried faces when I occasionally managed to open my eyes, the low voices coaxing me to wake and accept a cool drink if only for a moment, and the touch of two pairs of small, soft hands and one pair of large, callused hands as they laid cool cloths on my hot skin. I remembered that my dreams were dark with the fears of my past and hearing one voice promising that he was there and I wasn't alone until finally my dreams lightened before disappearing all together. I remembered that even in the midst of my feverish existence and terrifying nightmares, I knew I could trust the owner of the voice. He was my friend and I could trust him to shield me while I was vulnerable. Then, I woke up and wondered if those memories were really just the products of my fevered dreams.

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A/N: Please Read and Review! Yes, I know this is a very short chapter, but it was the right place to end it. Poor Katerina couldn't even get through Christmas without something happening. I'm sure everyone can relate to this particular dilemma too. So, the next chapter will be a direct continuation of this one and will be posted after I decide whether or not it should be from Oreius or Katerina's POV. Any requests? Click the little review button below and let me know what y'all think.