A.N.- thankies for the reviews! :3
Chapter 2- Making Progress
There were voices…voices swirling above me…the colors wouldn't hold still either…we were…moving? More voices…breathing was beginning to become a noteworthy task as each breath was painful and taxing…
XOXOXO La Volpe POV XOXOXO
We returned to the den as subtly as one could with an unconscious, strangely dressed man on your shoulders…and it was there that all hell broke loose. Ezio began to struggle as soon as I placed him down on his bed; he managed a few moans and coughs before his breathing became severely labored.
"Ezio? What is it my friend? Please open your eyes," I was pushing down on his wrists to prevent him from clawing at his throat, "Leonardo, what is going on?" The artist rushed through an examination before agitatedly gripping his dark blond hair and muttering things under his breath,
"Leonar-" Claudia tried but ignored completely as he motioned her to silence before leaning his ear down to the assassin's chest,
"Ezio, my friend, breathe deeply for me." he spoke softly,
"Can't…hurts…" the artist winced,
"Just once? For our sake Ezio?" a pained grimace crossed that paling man's face before he attempted to inhale a good lungful of air; he got about halfway when he broke into a deep wet coughing fit. Leonardo leaned back with a look of sadness; I couldn't take it anymore,
"What is wrong with him?" I spoke, a little harsher than normal, while I bore my eyes into his pale blue ones. Claudia was helping her brother sit up and rubbing circles on his back as it shook violently with every cough,
"I am afraid he has caught pneumonia. It causes a buildup of mucus called phlegm in the lungs and prevents proper breathing and…."
"And!" I prompted, not liking the look of fear that crossed his features,
"In most cases, pneumonia is fatal." He spook low and soft, but every word rang in my ears like a bell's resounded clang. Fatal. The one word that followed all of us in our careers but never truly hit home as harshly as it should…at least until now. Ezio Auditore was too young to die, he still had so much more to live for, to do, to see…for him to die would be like the loss of a brother. He joked around a lot and occasionally pulled a few pranks now and then* but any annoyance that he brought was quickly replaced with laughter and fun…who would do that if he were to pass on?
"However, Ezio is very strong and I know that if we try nothing than he will die."
XOXOXO Two days later XOXOXO
"Well," the others looked to Claudia, who had broken the silence in Ezio's bedroom, "that was awful." She was referring to the latest bout of coughing that they had all witnessed. It wasn't the last, according to Leonardo, but so far it was definitely the worst he had endured. It had struck so suddenly and so harshly that ailing man had paled to the point of being white as the sheets wrapped about him, he had clutched at his chest and if that wasn't a hint at how much pain the assassin was feeling than the few tears slipped unbidden from his eyes were a definite sign. And one that scared the others around him more than any of them would ever want to feel the emotion of fear was the first scream they heard ripped from him; full of agony and completely bone-rattling that they seemed paralyzed just by hearing the sound.
The coughing they had grown accustomed to, as much as it sickened any of them to admit such a fact, but Leonardo had explained from the very beginning to encourage Ezio not to fight the horrible coughing fits that he slipped into. He would go into very in depth explanations about the mucus that was inhibiting breathing and how the coughing would help get rid of it; La Volpe and Claudia listened attentively to the explanations and did as the artist said but it didn't make it any easier to watch.
To watch as their brother and close friend choked in his sleep causing him to wake and cough up the mucus in his lungs, to watch as the sickness became stronger and a fever set in to accompany the pneumonia, his eyes glazed and mind muddled.
"Is…" they both looked to the young woman, "Is he getting better?" La Volpe had no answer for her and turned to the one they were relying as a doctor and instructor; the blond man studied the assassin before sighing and turning to the others two,
"Believe it or not, our friend is doing rather well for such a severe illness. The coughing fits, though they seem to cause more damage are actually helping clear the mucus from his lungs. In fact-"
"Are more painful than you make them out to be amico mio." A hoarse whispered voice came from the bed, startling the three in the room.
"Ezio!" all three practically yelled, except Volpe…he doesn't yell, and the sick man flinched,
"Merda…I know…you all missed me but please…don't yell."
"Sorry Ezio, how are you feeling?"
"Like a pezzo di merda!" he groaned as a few deep coughs shook his core,
"It's good to see you awake and somewhat alert my brother."
"If you are awake enough to curse than you are awake enough to take your medicine yourself." Leonardo was busy at a desk they had cleared mixing several of the vile smelling concoctions into one cup, which was very big in Ezio's eyes, before placing it near the fire to warm. All too quickly, the smell of the medicine filled the whole room and Ezio wrinkled his nose,
"What…is that horrible smell? It reminds me of the sewers that ran beneath an assassin's tomb." The three of them chuckled while subtly covering their own noses to block out the horrid scent, "I don't have to drink that stuff do I?" Leonardo smiled, his face the picture of innocence, as he brought over the now steaming cup to his friend.
"Mi scuso Ezio, but…" his eyes flicked to the cup and back the golden gaze that was narrowing suspiciously, but he kept smiling before surrendering with a sigh, "You do have to drink it my friend; it will help your body fight the illness." The narrowed eyes widened with horror as the full scent of the mixture hit his senses full on and a grimace settled on his face; reaching with great trepidation, he took the cup and brought it his lips with a visible shudder.
His sister tapped her slender finger on the bottom of the cup, as he slowed in his desperate chug to get the medicine down without tasting, urging him to drink the rest without the chance to spit out the gulp in his mouth or throw the cup against the wall…or into the fire. He finally swallowed when he took a more cautious sniff of what he was drinking before shooting a accusing glare to Leonardo whose "innocence" slipped into an "I'm sorry" smile,
"It is best that you sleep the illness off as much as you can mio amico." The assassin's eyelids were drooping and his grip on the cup was loosening to the point of being dangerous to the poor utensil; La Volpe came to the rescue of the cup but held it at a safe distance while Claudia helped her brother back into a lying down position and Leonardo pulled the blankets back up.
He was asleep as soon as the lamps were dimmed yet again.
A.N. - Squeee! Didn't think anyone would consider this story any good…there's not much action…at all. Sowwy.