Care

Characters: Penguin, Shachi. Rating: K. Warnings: none

Penguin sat by the bed in the infirmary, not taking his eyes off the occupant for a moment. Law had appeared largely unconcerned by the time he'd finished checking Shachi over.

"It's just a fever," he'd said bluntly, pulling the blankets up snugly around the ginger's sleeping form. "Nothing to worry about. He just needs to sleep it off." He'd placed a cool cloth on his head to help with the discomfort. "Call me if he gets worse." Penguin had nodded and Law had left the room, leaving him alone with his sleeping nakama.

"You're an idiot," he informed the ginger. "It would have been way easier if you'd just said you weren't feeling great last night." He wasn't expecting an answer, so he didn't panic when none came. His hand rested on Shachi's hair, carding through the strands gently just so they had something to do.

"Mama…" Shachi whimpered quietly, and Penguin's attention snapped back to him. He was still fast sleep, but his head rolled to the side, dislodging the damp cloth. Penguin scooped it up and returned it to its rightful place, as awkward as that was with Shachi's current position. "Papa…"

Should he call Law? Was sleep-talking a sign that he was getting worse?

"No… Mama…" Shachi protested. "Papa!"

"No, Shachi," Penguin whispered, thoughts of fetching Law fleeing from his mind as comprehension struck. This was too private to get the others involved.

"Say something, Mama!" Shachi insisted. Penguin leant forwards and wrapped his arms around him. "Mama!"

"It's okay," Penguin tried to reassure him, wanting to break through the nightmare. It had been a long time since that one had raised its head and he wanted to shut it away again, to stop it hurting. "Shachi, it's okay." It wasn't okay, not at all, but Penguin couldn't let him stay caught up in it.

"Penguin…" Shachi whined instead, and he held his breath, wondering if he'd woken up. "Help…"

"I'm right here," Penguin told him, brushing the ginger hair back from his face. "It's okay, Shachi. It's just a fever. Law said it'll pass soon."

"Help… Penguin…" Shachi tried again, and Penguin faltered because he didn't need any help. "Mustn't… be a… nuisance…"

He was still firmly asleep, Penguin realised with a sinking heart. Asleep, and now apparently convinced he was causing Penguin problems.

Penguin might have written it off as mere hallucinations, except he'd recognised Shachi's previous words, recalling them from the day they'd lost their parents. If that was based in truth, then maybe this one was too.

"You're never a nuisance," he told him, hoping he could hear him but knowing better than to expect it. "Never. So just tell me when you need me, okay?" Shachi didn't answer, unsurprisingly, and Penguin sighed. He'd have to tell him again later, when the fever had broken and he was aware of his surroundings.

It was several hours later when that finally happened, an earlier visit from Law firmly telling Penguin to let go and put Shachi back in bed so he could heal faster ("he doesn't need your body heat as well").

"Why am I here?" the ginger asked blearily, squinting. Penguin quickly retrieved his shades for him and gently slid them onto his face so he could see properly. Shachi looked down, biting his lip, and Penguin decided their conversation couldn't wait.

"Why didn't you tell me you didn't feel well?" he asked. Shachi froze.

"It wasn't important," he claimed, but Penguin was already shaking his head, pulling Shachi in for another tight hug now that he was awake and the fever was gone.

"Of course it was, you idiot," he scolded. "Do you know how scared I was when you fell?"

"I fell?" Shachi asked, confused, and Penguin nodded.

"Straight out of your bunk," he told him. "Not what I wanted to see first thing in the morning so from now on you're going to tell me, got it?" Shachi didn't reply, and Penguin sighed. "You're not a nuisance," he said, feeling Shachi stiffen in his hold. "You're important. Remember that, okay?"

Shachi mumbled something unintelligible into his shoulder, but the tone sounded like a resigned agreement, so that was good enough for Penguin.

Two requests in one go here - a follow on from Promise (chapter 125) and Shachi having fever dreams about his family.

Thanks for reading!
Tsari