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Sparring against Terra was usually a challenge, but today Aqua wasn’t even breaking a sweat. She dodged another obvious lunge, even making a face when Terra didn’t recover as quickly as he should have.
“Should we get you a cane, old man?” she taunted, Terra uncharacteristically panting and wiping his brow with his forearm. At sixteen, his pride was always on the line when he sparred against Aqua, and while he could lose with pride when he was at his best, he was always hard on himself when he made stupid mistakes.
“Terra, while your offenses are admirable, a brute force approach will hardly be enough when you face a quicker opponent such as Aqua,” Eraqus scolded, watching curiously as Terra coughed and attempted to shake the fatigue out of his head.
“Sorry, Master,” he mumbled, squaring up to begin sparring again.
“I think that’s enough for today,” Eraqus interrupted before they could begin again. Surprisingly, Terra didn’t argue, picking up his bag and starting to trudge back to the castle without another word.
“What’s with him?” Aqua asked as she and Eraqus picked up the remaining equipment and began a slow walk back to the castle.
“I suspect a bruised ego,” Eraqus suggested, though his brow was furrowed as he looked ahead at the way Terra slumped as he walked. Aqua rolled her eyes and ran ahead to be beside Terra, and she sighed when she saw the pained look on his face.
“Are you that sore of a loser that you won’t even wait for me?” she asked, falling into step with him as she looked ahead at the setting sun.
“Sorry…” he mumbled, looking at the ground as he walked.
“What’s with you?” Aqua asked, face screwed up in irritation. “You’re never this broody when you lose.”
“I’m not broody,” he argued, although the tone of his voice didn’t do much to convince her. “I’m just…tired.”
“Tired? I had to drag you out of bed this morning!” she laughed. “You sleep more than anyone I know! Come on, it’s my turn to make dinner-I’ll make you your favorite.”
“I…I think I’m just going to shower and go to bed,” he replied, shaking his head and continuing to walk ahead while Aqua stopped and let herself lag back to where Eraqus was walking.
“Leave him be, Aqua,” Eraqus scolded lightly. “The male ego is one of the most fragile substances in the worlds.”
Aqua was already reading from a textbook as she sat and waited in the room they used for their morning lessons, waiting for Terra to arrive. He was always late, but since she had dragged him out of bed early the day before she decided to leave him to his own devices today. Finally, she heard the door open and close behind her.
“It’s about time! I swear, you’ll be late to your own-“ she stopped as she turned to see Eraqus entering rather than Terra.
“I apologize, Master,” Aqua stammered, standing and giving him a bow as he reached the front of the classroom. “I thought you were Terra.”
“I gathered,” he answered, taking his customary seat in front of where Aqua and usually Terra sat. “I’m afraid Terra will not be joining us today.”
“What? Is he still brooding about yesterday?”
“No, that’s not it,” Eraqus answered, opening his own book as Aqua’s face fell slightly.
“Then…what is it?” she asked, her face changing from irritation to concern.
“Terra is not well this morning,” Eraqus answered, plowing ahead with his lesson. “So, today we will be discussing the-“
“‘Not well’ how? Is he okay?” Aqua interrupted, not even attempting to look at her book. Eraqus sighed and closed his own book, folding his hands lightly on top of it.
“Aqua, he is ill. He will be fine, in time. Are you going to be able to focus on your lesson?”
Aqua thought for less than a moment, shaking her head honestly. “No, sir. Not if he’s hurting.”
Eraqus sighed once more, Aqua completely missing the slightest knowing smile playing on their Master’s lips.
“Go,” he sighed, the word barely out of his mouth before Aqua was out the door and down the hall, pausing for only a moment outside of Terra’s door before she pushed her way in.
“So are you really sick or are you just mad about-“
She stopped as soon as she was in the door, the smell hitting her first followed by the extremely pathetic sight of Terra cocooned in his blankets and shivering madly. The room felt ten degrees warmer than the hall, and it smelled of sweat and sick. Terra was barely visible where he was covered in every blanket he owned, but Aqua could see that his face was covered in sweat and pinched in pain.
“You’re really sick,” she whispered, crossing over to his bed and sitting on the edge of it.
Terra shivered, his teeth chattering like he was freezing to death. Aqua pulled the covers back to just his shoulders, feeling the heat radiate off him like fire.
“Oh, Terr…” Any thought she had of Terra being a sore loser evaporated, and she felt guilty for ever thinking that was the reason for his behavior the previous day.
Beneath the blankets he was in a hoodie and sweatpants, but Aqua could tell he was sweating all over beneath them.
“Terra…you’re burning up,” she sighed, feeling his forehead with one hand and looking down at his shivering form worryingly. “Come on, you’ll feel better if we get you in the shower.” She pulled the covers away only to see him cower in the fetal position.
“F-freezing…” he mumbled, eyes closed as he trembled.
“Come on, Terr, help me out a bit,” she said softly, putting her arms beneath his and helping him up into a sitting position. It was obvious in the way he held himself that he had no strength, the illness sapping whatever he had left in what must have been a sleepless night. She helped him up, keeping her arms around his waist as he put one of his over her shoulders, leaning heavily into her as they walked the short distance from his door to the adjacent bathroom.
As soon as they arrived, Terra sat down hard on the closed toilet seat, a fit of coughing making him double over. Aqua reacted just in time, flinging the small trash can in front of him just in time as he heaved into it, Aqua rubbing his back as he vomited. She took the can when he finished, Terra leaning over onto the cool tile of the sink and resting his head while Aqua started the water, feeling the cool temperature and knowing he wasn’t going to like it one bit.
“Come on,” she repeated, helping him sit up again and pulling his drenched hoodie off over his head. In any other situation she would probably be blushing to the point of ignition, but Terra looked so unbelievably pathetic that all she could think about was lowering his fever enough that he could get some rest. His teeth chattered as he hugged his arms over his chest, the thin sheen of sweat shimmering in the light of the bathroom. She helped him get down to his shorts, deciding neither of their dignity could survive less than that as she helped him stand and get to the shower.
He yelped as soon as the water touched him, Aqua sure what felt lukewarm to her feeling frigid to him.
“Aqua! It’s freezing,” he whined, his shivers increasing to an almost violent level as he sank to the bottom of the tub, Aqua adjusting the spray so it wouldn’t hit him in the face.
“Just a few minutes,” she tried to reason with him, getting fairly soaked herself in the process. “Just to lower your temperature a bit. You don’t have enough spare brain cells to lose,” she teased, getting only a feeble attempt at a smile from Terra.
When she looked back on the event, Aqua had no idea how she managed to get Terra back to his room and dressed, Terra sitting on his desk chair with his head on his desk while Aqua changed his sweat-drenched sheets. Once he was back in bed, she disappeared for a few moments to raid the medicine closet, coming back with a small selection of cold and flu formulas.
“Sorry I can’t just magic this away like Eraqus does when we get hurt,” she sighed, setting the medicines down on the side table and sitting on the edge of his mattress.
“Why are you doing this?” Terra asked weakly, his eyes finally not as fever-bright but weary as he talked to her. “I know it’s gross.”
“You’re my best friend,” she replied with a shrug. “I’m going to take care of you when you’re sick.”
Terra groaned as an apparent stomach cramp wracked his body. Aqua had the forethought to bring the rinsed-out trash can into the bedroom with them, although she was glad when he didn’t need it.
“Try to get some rest, okay? You need it.”
“Will you stay here?” he asked quietly, his eyes already closed against his pillow. “Until I fall asleep?”
“Of course I will,” she answered with a roll of her eyes. “Like I would be anywhere else.”
He was already snoring softly before she even settled into the chair.