Prompt 30 – Any Past Prompt (2023's Prompt 19 – Curled Up with A Pet)

"What's the matter, Anah?"

Jules's voice pulled Anah from her thoughts. She shook her head. "Nothing, dear, it's… alright."

Jules gave the cobra a look. "No offense, but I don't think so. You've been looking really lost all day."

Anah glanced toward the parlor door, but quickly turned back to what she was doing before, that being making a raspberry pie.

"Anah? I know Dad's got the flu—again—but you know he'll be okay."

"Yes. I do know that, dear." Anah scooped raspberry filling into the unbaked pie crust.

"Am I distracting you?"

"You know what? Yes, you are."

Jules looked like he had been punched in the stomach.

"Go study or something."

"I just got done studying."

"Then go study more!"

Still looking hurt, Jules turned to go into his bedroom. He came out about a minute later, though, and put on his coat and riding boots. He left the house without a word.

Anah stared at her pie for a moment, then slithered to the end of the counter to peer into the parlor. Moffitt was lying in a feverish daze on the couch, with Livna snuggled up with him. As it had only been a couple of months since Livna joined the family, Anah was still getting used to her presence. It was especially strange given that Moffitt used to strongly dislike dogs, but having to watch a husky belonging to Millington's daughter over the summer had changed his mind—mostly. Moffitt would still rant on occasion about a stray dog that appeared on one of their missions in North Africa.

Anah hadn't thought much about how things would change in the autumn and winter, when Moffitt was more prone to getting sick, so she was a little surprised to find Livna with Moffitt that morning. Surprised, and disappointed, but Anah tried not to act disappointed. This was a change that she had to get used to. She just hoped it didn't mean the end of cuddling with Moffitt. An animal like a dog is much better suited to cuddling, Anah thought.

She finished putting the pie together before sliding it in the oven to bake, then heard someone hurriedly coming out of the bedroom. Anah froze when Vanora stopped in front of her, an angry look on her face.

"You have some nerve, yelling at Jules like that when he didn't do anything to you!" Vanora said.

Anah looked down, knowing she shouldn't have gotten upset with Jules in the first place.

"Anah, you're as bad as Jack is when it comes to asking for things. Actually, no, you're worse than Jack is. I will take care of the pie when it's ready. You—" Vanora picked up the cobra and brought her into the parlor, where she dropped Anah on Moffitt's chest, "—cuddle with Jack. When Jules gets back, you're going to apologize for your behavior. No one is replacing you with anything. We went over this when River was here." Vanora felt her husband's forehead. She left the parlor and returned a minute later with a cool, damp cloth, which she pressed to Moffitt's forehead.

Moffitt drew in a labored breath, murmuring, "Thanks, darling."

"You're welcome, love. Do you need anything else?"

"Where's… Anah?"

"I just brought her out to sit with you."

"Thanks." Moffitt was quiet for a long moment. "Was going to ask for her… earlier… fell asleep."

Vanora sighed. "Well, she's been in a mood because she thought you replaced her with Livna."

"Eh? Really? No… no, never."

Vanora looked at Anah, then back at her sick husband. "She yelled at our son because of it."

More silence. It looked like Moffitt was having a hard time putting his thoughts into words. "Well, that wasn't very nice," he murmured.

"No, it wasn't." Vanora stroked Moffitt's hair. "Alright, no more talking, get some more sleep."

Livna had been still and quiet that whole time until Vanora gave her a scratch around her ears. The dog raised her head to lean into the scratches, but then put her head back on Moffitt's chest once Vanora left.

Anah anticipated Moffitt to say something about her behavior, but it looked like he had fallen asleep again. She let out a quiet sigh, feeling a bit ridiculous now. She nuzzled Moffitt's chin, then felt a husky's wet nose on her side. Livna was giving her a rather sad look, as if she knew what all the commotion had been about.

"Not replacing anyone…" Moffitt said, his voice barely above a whisper. "Love both of you…" He did his best to give both animals a hug.

Anah nuzzled Moffitt's hand, and tried taking a nap of her own, feeling the rising and falling of Moffitt's chest, and the pulsing of his heart. When she awoke, a lovely sunset snowfall had begun outside. She noticed Moffitt was awake, too, gazing out the window. His eyes were still a bit glassy with fever, but he looked far more alert than he did earlier in the day. He looked down at his chest when Anah shifted a little.

"Good morning," he said.

"How are you feeling?" Anah asked.

"No much better, but not worse, either," Moffitt replied. "You?"

"Me? You are the one who is sick."

"I know, but I seem to remember that you were in a bad mood earlier because you thought I replaced you with Livna."

"I was, but… now I know how ridiculous that was."

"I was being serious when I said that I was going to ask for you to come snuggle, but I fell asleep."

"You looked awful this morning. I was definitely being ridiculous for not thinking about that."

"It's alright." Moffitt began petting the back of Anah's head. "You're forgiven. You do still need to have a talk with Jules, though."

"I know. That wasn't right… what I did. He was trying to help."

Vanora came into the parlor a few minutes later, holding a cup of broth. "Jack. How are you?"

"Well, I was just saying to Anah that I don't feel much better or worse," Moffitt replied.

"You're looking a little better. Do you think you can eat anything?"

"I can try. Is that plain broth?"

"Yes, and, no, it's not watered down."

"Good. I'm actually feeling a bit hungry."

"That's a good sign, love. I thought you said you weren't feeling better."

"I don't consider that horrible, hollow, gnawing feeling in my stomach to be 'better.' I also don't think I've had any tea today."

Vanora sighed. "Given that you've started your habitual grumbling due to not having tea, I think you are feeling better."

"Perhaps." Moffitt tried to sit up. "Livna, off, please."

The husky obediently got off the couch, and Anah slithered up to wrap herself around Moffitt's shoulders. Vanora handed him the cup of broth, then kissed his forehead. "I'll go get Jules so he and Anah can talk."

There was a part of Anah that didn't want to face Jules yet, but knew she had to. He didn't deserve how she had treated him, and she loved him. The day would come when Moffitt would pass the ancient pendant on to Jules, effectively making Anah his, so she wanted them to remain on good terms. She looked embarrassed and ashamed when Jules entered the room, but she was surprised to see he didn't look angry with her. Anah drew in a breath. "Jules, I am sorry for getting upset with you earlier. That was not deserved under any circumstances."

"No, it wasn't," Jules said. "Apology accepted."

"Glad that's resolved," Moffitt said.

"How are you, Dad?"

"Bloody hell, is everyone going to be asking me that?"

"Well, yeah. It's not exactly a mystery you have the flu, and it's normal for people to ask if you're feeling alright."

Moffitt took a sip of the broth. "I feel like rubbish."

"Alright. Can I get you anything?"

"Not at the moment. Thanks." Moffitt looked at Anah after setting his cup down. "This may sound a bit silly, but I'm quite happy having Livna now, along with you, when I'm sick. After all, there's not much to complain about with more cuddles."

Author's Note: Another Sicktember completed. I'm happy with how my entries turned out. It's likely that I will be doing this again next year, if the event continues, and I will be doing what I did this year with combining prompts and not forcing myself to do all 30 if there are any that don't strike my fancy. Regardless, I enjoy writing these, and I look forward to next year's round of prompts.