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Carmen stood a few rooftops away from the Tower of London, a smirk of satisfaction on her lips. Saved another artifact, and returned it to its place, without so much as a speck of dust on it's pristine surface.
"Are you doing that thing where you stand and look at the cityscape in glory again?" Player's voice came in through the comms.
"Wha-? No! I was just, uh, just-" Carmen stammered out, and she heard player snicker of the other side.
"Save it, Red," he laughed. "I get it. You did return the Koh-i-Noor diamond back to its spot on Queen Victoria's crown." (yes it's a real thing, yes i had to look it up)
"What can I say, Player? I love my job." Carmen said, sliding her hands up to rest on her hips. "Although I wish they'd return the diamond to India. Britain seized the diamond back in the 1800's. It just seems like the right thing to do. To return something rightfully theirs." Suddenly, a breeze picked up from below, blowing Carmen's coat and hat. She grabbed onto her hand with one hand, and wrapped her other arm around her waist, shivering slightly.
"Well, how 'bout you call it a night on the gloating, and get some rest."
"Call it a night on the gloating..." Carmen muttered under her breath playfully mocking Player.
"What was that, Carmen?" Player asked, feigning offense.
"Nothing, nothing,” she giggled as she hopped down from the roof. “My ride here?”
“Just about,” Player answered. Player heard a small gasp and then the sound of Carmen stifling a sneeze. “Gesundheit. Ivy and Zack are rounding the corner.” As he said that, a black limousine came into Carmen’s view, with Zack sticking his head out of the window.
“Carmen!” Zack’s voice was a drastic change from the English accents they'd been surrounded by. She lifted her hand in a small wave as they pulled to a stop in front of her. She opened the door and slid into the seat next to Ivy.
“Well if it isn’t the savior of Britain!” Ivy said, smiling brightly at Carmen.
“It was one diamond, Ivy,” Carmen laughed rolling her eyes.
“Yeah! One huge diamond that was worth millions! V.I.L.E. could do a lot of damage with something like that,” Ivy said pointedly.
"I mean, yeah, you're ri-" Carmen started, but cut herself off with another sneeze. "You're right."
"Bless you," Ivy said. "Anyway, you did good tonight, Carm. We all did," she finished, a bright smile on her face. Carmen took off her hat and leaned back into the headrest. Thinking back, it had definitely been a long day. She loved running around the world, her friends by her side, and she wouldn't trade it for anything. But there were also those rare times when she felt the late nights and chilly mornings catching up to her. Sleepiness, set deep in her bones, and the longing for a hot drink. Though, she still had a small smile on her face. Then an itch. She sniffled and scratched at her nose before sneezing once, twice, and then a brief pause before a third time.
"Bless you," Chorused Player, Zack and Ivy.
"Geez, Carmen, are you okay?" Player asked.
"Yeah," Carmen said, clearing her throat, but already feeling congestion swell up him her head. "I'm fine."
"Okay, if you say so," Player sighed, disbelief thick in his tone. "Look, I gotta blast, and I know it's late there because time zones are whack, so go back to the hotel and get some rest."
"Sure thing. Bye Player," Carmen said saluting, though she knew he couldn't see her.
Back at their hotel, Carmen, Zack and Ivy made their way up to their suite. Player really had to stop spoiling the three of them. The three said their goodnights, and headed to their respective rooms. Carmen stripped off her sweatshirt and replaced it with an old t-shirt, then changed into sweatpants. Dropping herself into bed, she fell asleep almost immediately.
When she woke up, Carmen sniffled thickly, and rubbed her eyes. Her throat felt raw and uncomfortable and her head felt like it was stuffed with cotton. Not to mention a sinus headache already beginning to take hold. Stretching her arms over her head, she pushed herself out of bed, pulled her hoodie on and walked out of her room. Despite her coming down with a cold, Carmen was an early riser. It was seven a.m., and she wasn't expecting Ivy or Zack to be awake for a little while. The sun was covered by a thin layer of clouds, just enough so it wasn't a yellow morning light, but a soft gray. She wandered through the suite before her eyes were caught on a red tea kettle. Tea sounded absolutely perfect.
Ten minutes later, Carmen had situated herself on one of the couches, a hot mug of earl grey in her hands. She muffled two sneezes into her arm and sniffed. She was tired, and a little achy, but she was enjoying the quiet morning.
Close to an hour later, Ivy emerged from her room, her short, copper hair a fluffy mess.
"Mornin’," she said, waving slightly, making her way to the kitchen. "You think they got any coffee in this place?" Carmen attempted to clear her throat before speaking, but she wasn't sure how much good it was going to do.
"I saw some in the cabinet above the stove," she said, voice cracking several times, but trying to ignore the overall raspy quality of it.
"Woah, Carmen, what did you do to your voice?" Ivy asked, immediately making her way over to Carmen.
“Nothing. My throat’s just a bit sore,” Carmen said smiling.
“A bit?” Ivy scoffed. “That sounds like it hurts a lot,” she said, sliding her hands up to her hips. Though, Carmen had a bit of a hard time taking her seriously with the way her hair was still a mess. Carmen shrugged it off, causing Ivy to sigh and walk away. “You’re impossible.” A few minutes later, Zack came out of his room, attempting to comb his hair back with his fingers.
“Good mornin’ sis, morning, Carm,” he said waving a little and yawning.
“Good morning, Zack,” Carmen said, smiling. Zack hadn’t seemed to notice the poor quality of her voice, or if he did, he didn’t say anything about it.
“With our current intel, V.I.L.E. won’t be attempting any capers for at least a few days. Anything you guys would be interested in doing today?” Carmen asked. However, talking had reignited the near constant tickle in her nose. She pulled her sleeve over her hand and stifled a small sneezing fit. This pushed Zack to speak up.
“I don’t know if you should be doin’ anything while you’re sneezin’ like that,” Zack said, cocking an eyebrow. “Maybe we should just, I dunno, use today to rest up?” He finished.
“What? I’m fine you guys,” Carmen said, smirking and cocking her head. Ivy and Zack exchanged a glance.
Carmen had gone to take a shower, leaving Zack and Ivy in the sitting room.
“She’s never gonna listen to us,” Ivy sighed. “Not as long as she’s certain she’s fine.”
“Let’s just see how it plays out. Maybe she is fine?”
Carmen hadn’t remembered getting out of the shower or getting dressed, and she certainly didn’t remember dragging Ivy and Zack out into the cold.
“Carmen, what’s going on?” Ivy asked as she stumbled on the side walk behind Carmen. They were right outside their hotel, and Carmen appeared to be excited about something. Yet she hadn’t told them what they were doing.
“It’s freezing,” Zack complained. “Aren’t you cold, Carm? You’re not even wearing a coat. You're hair is still wet.”
“Doesn’t matter. Let’s go!” Carmen said, grabbing hold of one of each of their arms. The three of them made it about halfway down the street before Carmen slowed down, and came to a stop. Her eyes glazed over slightly, and she seemed to sway on her feet a bit.
“W-where am I?” She murmured before submitting to a coughing fit, then starting to fall over. Zack quickly moved toward her side, and caught her.
“Woah there,” Zack said, lifting her slightly. “You’re shivering.” Carmen replied with a semi-conscious mumble. “Vee, she’s warm,” he said, feeling the warmth seeping through her clothes.
“Fever?” Ivy asked, walking closer.
“I’m pretty sure. Let's get her back upstairs," Zack said, attempting to pick Carmen up, and struggling. Ivy sighed and walked over.
"Alright, move," she said. "Let me show you how a lady does it." Ivy took Carmen from Zack and lifted her completely off the ground, and shifting her so she'd be easier to carry. Zack groaned.
"Yeah, whatever."
When Carmen came to, she found herself on the couch of the suite.
"What is going on?" she asked when she saw Ivy and Zack talking quietly.
"Ah, you're awake," Ivy said, sitting on the couch next to her."Do you remember anything that happened in the last two hours?" Carmen shook her head.
"I remember getting in the shower, but the rest is fuzzy," she said gingerly rubbing her temples. "And then it was really cold, and now I'm here."
"Well long story short, you dragged me and Vee out into the street in a feverish haze before fainting," Zack explained.
"Ah, delirium. That explains it," Carmen said thoughtfully.
"Naturally, I heroically carried you back to the room," Zack said, proudly puffing his chest out. Ivy punched him in the rib, causing him to let out a squeak of pain. "Okay, okay, Ivy carried you back up." Carmen laughed.
"Well thank you. Both of you," Carmen said, sheepishly rubbing at her neck. "I'm sorry for putting you through the trouble."
"Don't sweat it, Carm," Ivy said. "But maybe, next time, rest up before you almost crack your skull on the sidewalk."
"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea," Carmen laughed. "Now, maybe we should stay in today?"
"I'm ordering food!" Zack yelled, as he ran over to the phone, tripping on the carpet in the process. "Ow."
"Zack, will ya please stop bein' a clutz before the people downstairs start complaining," Ivy said, lightly kicking him in the arm with the toe of her converse. Carmen giggled from across the room.
"Shush," Zack groaned, making no effort to get up.
"What do you guys think about watching a movie?" Carmen suggested.
"Aw, yeah!" Ivy shouted, jumping over the coffee table to smush her body next to Carmen's. Zack hopped up and ran over the the couch, stepping on Ivy's foot. "Watch it, you dope," Ivy growled, reaching over to smack her brother.
"Guys!" Carmen said, voice cracking painfully, causing her to cough harshly. Zack and Ivy both slumped back, and Carmen snickered at them.
Twenty minutes into the movie, Carmen was asleep again. Shortly after, Zack had followed suit, then Ivy.
Looking back, it'd been a pretty long day, but a good one.