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Yae Miko sensed it before it really settled in, which she supposed was fortunate. It was a twinge in her stomach at first, like she’d accepted one too many Dango from Ei again-- who was she to turn down the Raiden Ei, doting on her the only ways she knew how?
That twinge turned into an ache, and with the ache came a dulling of the senses. And when she could barely taste her own Fried Tofu, she knew she was coming down with something.
As a Youkai, and a five-tailed kitsune at that, Miko rarely had to worry about illness. Stomach aches from eating too many vegetables, yes, but that was her fox side objecting. So with sickness hanging over her, ruining her meals and promising an unpleasant few days, she holed herself up in her private quarters at the Shrine.
She wishes she’d bought more snacks, though. Now that her girls knew she was sick, they wouldn’t be so easily convinced to make food runs for her unless said food was soup or otherwise medicinal.
At the very least, they would keep their distance. She doesn’t like being fussed over by humans, and she’s more than fine with spending a few days alone to sleep off her flu.
What a flu, Miko reflects, reaching hazily for the jug of water. Her head throbs with every move, her throat aches, and she alternates between sweating profusely and needing to be buried in her nest of blankets and pillows.
A thump outside her pile of blankets makes Miko’s ears twitch, sending twinges of pain through her skull. She loves her ears, she does, they’re prettier than any human ears could dare be, but the muscles seem to run far too close to wherever headaches lived.
Another noise, wood on Tatami mat. Her shrine maidens wear socks inside, so this isn’t one of her girls. Miko frowns, using her hands to hold her ears down, and runs herself through the possibilities. A friend, yes, because they’re in and Ei would obliterate anything that thought to hurt her on Shrine grounds.
The next noise, of a door sliding open and closed a bit too loudly, is followed by a soft mutter of “Apologies”, and Miko suddenly knows.
“Sara,” Miko says as sweetly as her parched throat can manage. “Little bird, you know I’ll never say no to a visit, but why are you in my chambers?”
Sara squawks, and Miko parts her lips in a toothy smile. There she is.
Pushing herself up, Miko lays herself over her blankets so she can look at the intruding tengu. Sara herself has frozen in place, golden eyes fixed on Miko’s own tired violets.
The tengu takes a long, deep breath, closing her eyes. “Yae.”
Miko grunts. Sara’s formality is adorable, truly, but she kept falling into the habit after even a few days away. And she couldn’t even tease her about it, not with her throat like it is.
“You have given me a standing invitation to your quarters, yes. The Shrine Maidens informed me that nobody save the Shogun was permitted to enter during your time of rest, but I deemed your permission more significant than their request,” Sara says finally, the words tumbling out of her mouth. “Is there anything I can do to assist your recovery, Yae?”
“Hmm,” Miko hums. When she opens her mouth to speak again, a cough comes out. She coughs again, and again. Her dry throat itches and aches, and it is only after a short coughing fit that she begins to feel a little better.
Sara watches with worry clear in her eyes. Miko despises it; she’ll be fine, she’ll survive. She hasn’t needed help before, not in hundreds of years, so why start now?
“Are you-”
“Nothing at all, little bird,” Miko says quickly, tilting her head and smiling as best she can manage. “I just need a little time alone to rest, hmm?”
“Are you sure?” Sara confirms, walking up to Miko’s nest of blankets. She reaches a hand out, but retracts it quickly. “Yae, if there is anything I can do to ensure your comfort, just say the word. On my honor as a tengu, it will be done. W-with discretion, of course.”
“Miko,” she corrects, flicking her ears in lieu of a hand gesture. Her chin is resting in the blankets, and she can feel her tails flopping out behind her. This Yae nonsense was grating, and it offers her an easy redirect.
With considerable effort, she raises one of her five tails to point at Sara.
“We went over this, didn’t we?” Miko breathes out, coughing once, “Come on, you call me Miko.”
Sara stares, flexing her hand. Her eyes trail past Miko’s face, no doubt looking to her tails-- had Sara seen them before? No matter, she would see them eventually. Too much effort to hide them now, anyways.
“Miko, then,” Sara nods, as she had the last several times she had been corrected. “I shall do my best, Miko. Would you like some tea? Should I send for medicine?”
Miko wants to scream. Sara is here and she would rather nobody be here. Or... oh, now there’s an idea.
“Fine, fine,” Miko concedes, rolling her eyes. “If you must, could you send for a stew to be brought tonight? The girls did a good job with my soup, but I’m craving something... substantial. Something I can sink my teeth into, hmm? I’d hate to start snapping at the little bird that flew in my window.”
Sara blushes, and Miko’s lips part in a vulpine grin. “And I’d hate to keep you from your work, Sara, even if I don’t mind your company. Let Ei know I’m sick, instead. She’ll know what to do.”
Ei did not know what to do, but Sara wouldn’t expect that of her all-knowing Shogun. In all likelihood, she’d receive a worried letter from her awkward lover; something she could tease about for weeks. A perfect solution, all in all!
Her victory is cut short by another coughing fit. After accepting the water jug from Sara, she waves the Tengu on her way.
“Finally,” Miko groans, flopping onto her back.
It only takes minutes for Miko to get bored again.
She has been here before.
The Shogun stands before her, a bitter monument to a closed heart. Yae Miko has come calling, expecting no answer.
“Please, Ei,” Miko begs, “Let me in. Come back to me.”
Thunder rumbles in the skies, somehow worse than an empty silence.
Miko bolts up in a cold sweat, hand outstretched and a fading cry on her lips.
She takes breath after shuddering breath, fighting the itchiness in her throat that begs her to cough. Her headache has calmed somewhat, but it still throbs when she moves her ears too much. A swig of water eases her throat, and getting her breathing under control helps everything.
Her nightmare fades quickly, drowned out by the general bodily discomfort that came with being sick. And it had only gotten worse while she was asleep, it seems.
“Ugh,” Miko groans, flopping back down into her mess of blankets. What a waste of energy.
She hears a cough from next to her, and her heart rate spikes once more. Electro sparks across her hands, her lips curl back to expose fangs--
Raiden Ei is sitting next to her, blinking obliviously with those beautiful violet eyes.
“Oh, it’s you,” Miko says simply, rolling her eyes. She slumps back into her blanket for the second time, exhaling with a tired groan. “I’ve said you make my heart skip a beat, Ei, but this is not what I meant.”
Ei’s eyes furrow. “Should I have awakened you, Miko? I was under the impression it is poor form to wake an ill sleeper.”
Miko opts to roll over, pressing her face into the soft blankets. No, she would not consider the even softer thighs she could be resting on, because those were attached to an idiot. Her very pretty idiot, at least.
“Ei. I love you, and you are always free to visit me. Even if you never do,” Miko adds sourly, her voice muffled by the blankets, “But that does not mean you can break into my quarters. At least knock, hmm?”
“Breaking in would imply some form of damage. Sara left the window open for me, and I entered.” A pause. “I love you too, Miko.”
Miko groans into her blankets. “Ei, I’m trying to be mad at you. Be a dear and stop being so pleasant.”
“Ah,” Ei remarks. “Would it improve your mood if I said I brought stew? Sara was quite emphatic that it be stew and not soup.”
Miko’s ears perked up, entirely against her will. Traitors.
“Really? I can’t smell a thing,” Miko mutters. She rolls over, opens her mouth-- and immediately begins coughing.
A hand, warm and tingly, presses against Miko’s back. The thumb rubs against her shoulder, only to stop halfway through its motion.
“This is a common symptom of illness, yes. As is your coughing. Would you like more water, or shall I feed you the stew?”
Something roils in Miko’s stomach. When she finally gets through her fit of coughs, she sighs.
“Don’t you have work to do, Ei?” Miko starts, turning to meet her lover’s eyes. “Or something more important to do? Come on, you know I’ll be fine.”
Ei tilts her head, moving forward until she is nestled on the edge of Miko’s blanket mound.
“Yes, there is work to be done,” she affirms eventually, “and it can wait. Sara informed me I ‘knew what to do’, which I do not, but it is only right that I take care of you where possible. And so, I am here.”
She pauses, offering up the water jug.
Miko huffs, accepting it and taking a long draught. “Thank you, Ei.”
It is very hard to argue with her, Miko reflects, her heart beating faster than she’d like to admit.
“Would you like your stew now, Miko? I do not know how much longer it will keep warm.”
Miko stares long and hard at her lover.
Raiden Ei stares back, eyes sparkling with lightning. She’s shifted somewhat, now leaning against the pillows with a large bowl of stew balanced in one hand. Her hair, tied up in its elaborate braid, curls and loops across Miko’s bed before dropping off the side.
After several long minutes, as Ei’s patience shows no sign of waning, Miko sighs.
“I’m still upset you broke into my quarters. You could at least announce yourself next time,” Miko clarifies, reaching out to cup Ei’s chin.
Ei is adorably confused, her brow furrowed and her lips curled in one of her cute frowns. “I did no breaking, as I said. But I will not startle you next time, this I swear.”
She lets Ei remain confused for a moment. It’s too good to pass up, as always.
And then, she leans forward, fighting her sore muscles, and presses her lips to Ei’s. She indulges in the heat of her lover’s breath, in the texture and softness of her lips, and pulls away with the feathery graze of incisors.
“Ahhh,” Miko rolls her neck, grinning widely, “Yes, I think I’m ready to eat now. I do hope you brought a spoon to feed me with, Ei.”
Ei is smiling now, too. “Excellent. It would not do to feed the Guuji cold stew, so we must make haste.”
The nightmare does not come again that night. Even in her dreams, she can feel the press of her lover’s body against her own.