Chapter Text
When Ghost woke up Soap was waiting for him, as he always did. The lid of his coffin slipped off to reveal the familiar Scot’s smile. His face is an illusion of light against the candle lit room. If he pretended Ghost could convince himself that he was basking in the sun again. Ghost reached out to the extended hand, excepting the offering of help. Hoping his bitter touch couldn’t seep through his gloves and taint the man’s warmth.
As Ghost climbed from his coffin, gathering his bearings he realised Soap had been strangely quiet. Not a single good morning or rise and shine. Just a simple gesture and silent assistance. Looking closer at his familiar Ghost noticed the dark shadows under Soap’s eyes. They’d been a constant before Soap had grown accustomed to his new sleep patterns, but now they were out of place on the usually energetic man.
As if sensing Ghost’s unease, Soap asked, “Is evry’hing alright sir?” The concern was misplaced on his exhausted features.
“I could ask you the same thing”. Ghost said, taking a step closer to Soap, trying to figure out what was wrong.
“Everything is right as rain,” Soap answered, flashing a strained smile.
Something was definitely wrong. A dull weight settled in Ghost’s stomach. He trusted Soap enough to come to him when he needed it. If he couldn’t then what good was Ghost doing.
Pushing the feeling down Ghost didn’t press any further, instead leaving to find the others with Soap trailing behind in his usual spot at his heels.
The halls were near silent, the only sound coming from the living room. The closer they got the louder it grew. Ghost’s already sensitive hearing was doing little to help against the assaulting noise other than tell who it was that was yelling.
Standing in the doorway to the living room Ghost was met with Rudy, Alejandro and Gaz. Gaz stood across from them, his jacket on like he was about to leave, Ghost could guess who he was going to see. Meanwhile Alejandro and Rudy were glaring at him like he’d insulted them personally.
Too absorbed in their stand off they failed to even notice Ghost and Soap. After waiting a few moments before clearing his throat, Ghost made his presence known. At the sudden noise Alejandro and Rudy turned to face him, clearly not expecting to be interrupted.
In their moment of distraction Gaz took his chance and lunged for the door, pushing past Ghost and outside. The bitter night air rushed inside in a gust as Gaz fled to see Alex and Farah. Before he could get far Alejandro turned to make chase but Rudy reached for him, grabbing the back of his shirt and stopping him in his tracks. “Calm yourself Mi Noche. We cannot control him”.
“But they’re werewolves,” Alejandro growled, the door slamming shut in his anger, the force echoing through the old walls.
“I know, but that’s not our decision” Rudy relayed, rubbing soothing circles on his husbands back, trying to calm his rage.
Ghost could only roll his eyes at the two even if he agreed with Alejandro. He could live with it as long as they didn’t come in the house.
“Just make sure they don't leave a smell Soap” Ghost grumbled. The following silence unsettled him as he turned to face his familiar. Looking down at him, Ghost noted his distant gaze and sunken eyes.
“Soap…?”
He asked again. This time more impatient, irritation starting to creep up when he didn’t receive an answer.
Soap didn’t answer straight away. His blank gaze checked out from the conversation and apparently the mortal plain. Turning to look up at Ghost he quickly averted his gaze like he’d been caught. “Aye sir”.
Ghost couldn’t help the uncertain feeling clawing at his chest, it itched his brain like he’d forgotten how to feel it. Concern. Trying to push it down, Ghost turned back down the halls, the sound of Soap’s familiar footfall following close behind. He had the whole night ahead of him, he didn’t have time to get in his own head about his own worries. If Soap wasn’t feeling well he’d come to him.
—
Waking up the next morning to an empty room, Ghost could only repeat to himself that Soap would come to him if something was wrong. His bones creaked as he stepped out from his coffin. Standing alone, Ghost couldn't shake the building weight in his chest. It itched and prickled under his skin like a sixth sense. He had to find Soap and ask him what was bothering him, just to ease his conscience. No other reason.
Even his concern began to grow into fear the more he searched the house. First he checked Soap's usual spots, the places he'd get distracted or hide away when everything got too much. Then he moved to less and less likely places. He even checked Alejandro and Rodolfo's room.
By midnight Ghost was about ready to tear the house apart. The putrid aura hung in the air as Ghost stormed from room to room. Rudy and Alejandro retreated somewhere to wait out the vampire's foul mood. Ghost paced the halls wracking his brain for anywhere Soap could be. Aimlessly following his senses, Ghost found himself in the basement. The cold cobblestone stained a coppery red from years of feasts. Standing in the bitter dark, Ghost stopped, trying to remember what brought him down here in the first place.
Before he could turn to go back upstairs he heard a low groan. Pained like a wounded animal.
He couldn’t recall leaving any snacks down stairs or any recent meals. Easily traversing the dark Ghost followed the low groans till he came to the far corner. Sat against the wall was an old sofa, bought around the seventeenth century, a relic of his past lives. Sprawled out on the goose feathered cushions was Soap. For a moment Ghost thought of what Soap would've looked like, laying against the same sofa in its prime, rich colours dulled in comparison to him. Another, louder groan broke Ghost from his thoughts as he bent down closer to his familiar.
Soap's eyes were barely open, the blue watered down to a grey as his chest rose and fell with ragged breaths, the stunted air passing through chapped lips. Ghost pressed the back of his hand to Soap's forehead. "Johnny. Are you alright?", Ghost whispered, worried his voice would startle the man in the dark room.
A low groan was his only reply as Johnny pushed his head against his hand, chasing the soothing chill. "Mmmm... hurts."
Ghost's mouth felt dry as he tried to find his words, "What hurts?".
"Ma head. Ma stomach. Ma everything..." Johnny groaned. Trying to follow Ghost's hand as he pulled away, nearly falling off the sofa in the process.
Catching him as he fell, Ghost felt Soap's body shaking against him. "Why did you come here?". Ghost asked as he picked Johnny up, supporting his back and legs under each arm. "... Dark an' cold" was his only reply before Johnny buried his head in his neck before passing out.
The life in his arms was overbearing but not from the weight, Ghost could pick Soap up with one hand, all he felt was dread as Soap's body went limp against his. Ghost quickly turned marching up the stairs, trying not to jostle him much. His mind raced with reasons for Johnny's sudden state as he rushed down winding halls. The only answer Ghost could find was his own negligence. He should've asked yesterday. Who knows how long he'd been like this?
Finally reaching Soap's room Ghost nearly broke the door off its hinges as it burst open. Inside Ghost laid Soap on his unmade bed, the sheets barely clinging on for their lives. It was times like these that Ghost was glad Soap prefers to stay in his pyjamas. Soap rested, his body melting into the mattress as Ghost adjusted the pillows, trying to support his head to ease his ache. Too busy fretting over his familiar Ghost paid no attention to Rudy and Alejandro as they poked their heads around.
"What are you doing?" Alejandro asked, trying to get a closer look at Soap.
"Somethings wrong with Soap," Ghost grumbled, pulling the blanket up to Soap's chin.
Rudy pushed himself into the already cramped room, trying to get a closer look at Soap. "What do you mean?"
"I found him in the basement. He passed out before I could ask him anything else" Ghost said, now squished between the two vampires.
"That doesn't look good," Alejandro remarked.
Ghost snapped, "You're not helping!"
"I'm not trying to help," Alejandro answered with a smile.
Soap's rattling coughing interrupted their argument before it could escalate. Instantly their attention was drawn to the half conscious human as he tried to roll over, constricted by the blanket Ghost had tucked him in.
"You idiot! He can't move like that. What if he chokes and dies?" Rudy berated reaching over to try and pull the blanket down.
"He wouldn't," Ghost said. Slapping his hand away but Rudy wasn't giving up. "You know how fragile humans can be," he continued.
"Alright Einstein what's wrong with him?" Ghost asked, his tone condescending as watched Soap roll over and groan, curling in on himself in pain.
A moment of silence passed over them as Rudy inspected Soap's pale face, mumbling to himself as Ghost and Alejandro leaned in. "I... think he's sick," was his final answer as Soap fell into a rasping coughing fit.
"How sick?" Ghost couldn't help the rising panic as he asked. He'd seen sicknesses that wiped entire civilisations from existence as his mind only fed him the worst case scenarios. Even as medicines advanced and plagues grew rare they only led to more dangerous viruses to be discovered.
"I don't know! Look at him" Rudy answered, clearly not sure how to handle the sick familiar.
Looking down at Johnny, his face contorted in discomfort as raspy breaths tried dragging air to his desperate lungs. It was a disturbing sight, to be reminded of his mortality. Ghost went to press his hand to Soap's pale face but withdrew. Looking down he couldn't fathom how his hands, which had borne so much violence, could comfort him. Even as Alejandro and Rudy checked his pulse and temperature Ghost felt detached like he would only make it worse, that this was his fault. How had he not seen it sooner? He knew something was wrong yesterday and he still did nothing.
His thoughts were interrupted when Alejandro spoke, "Last time I saw someone that sick they died".
"Oh right back in 1560" Rudy snapped, trying to lighten the mood at Ghost's sudden silence. Not that it wasn't common to see the hulking vampire go quiet but after spending as much time with him as Rudy did he'd come to realise there were different types of silence. Some content like when he was near those he cared for, others seething where his eyes glaze over in a rage, and a lost silence like now as he stares blankly down at Soap.
Just as Rudy was about to ask Ghost if he was alright Alejandro spoke again.”Gaz would know. He hangs out with Soap all the time". His words were exaggerated as he poked Soap's cheek, similarly to how you'd poke a dead fish.
"Well he's not here right now" Rudy replied, swatting Alejandro's hand away. “We need to do something until he gets back".
They turned to Ghost, his gaze still focused on Soap as if he’d disappear if he blinked. "When was the last time any of you were sick?" Rudy asked, trying to think of anything from his time as a human. They’d all experienced their fair share of illnesses but they hadn’t needed to be worried about it for centuries.
"Why would I know that?" Ghost spat, agitated with their useless chatter.
"I don't think I've ever been sick", Alejandro unhelpfully added. Rudy stopped and turned to him, too close to tearing his head off and not reattaching it. "If you're so sure how do you propose we help Soap?"
Alejandro thought for a second, caught in his lie "Well obviously we need to call a witch doctor", His voice far too confident for the answer he gave.
“How would we do that?” Rudy asked.
“I don’t remember.” His face was the picture of concentration as he thought, “But I do have some experience myself back when the arts of medicine interested me, I’ll go get my supplies” Alejandro was already out the door before Ghost could reach to stop him.
“Maybe he could help” Rudy said resting a hand on Ghost’s shoulder, he could feel it shaking under the thick layers.
“Maybe” Ghost replied, looking down at Soap's shaking body as he slipped into a restless sleep.
It didn't take long for Alejandro to get back with a relic of a leather bag. Swiping the contents of a small table onto the floor Alejandro dumped the bag in a dramatic puff of dust. Ghost and Rudy leaned closer inspecting the inventory as Alejandro began unpacking everything on the now clear table; after an assortment of vials and dried herbs smelling faintly of death, tools still coated in dried blood from a time before hygiene was a concern, and more teeth than necessary the bag was empty.
"That bag is a bio hazard" Rudy shuddered, taking a step back.
Inspecting Soap, Alejandro muttered to himself as he tried to remember what herbs would help. His memory was vast but still finite. Reaching over for his hand drill he remembered his teacher saying something about removing the headache manually but as he went to pick it up Ghost hissed at him, a look of challenge in his eyes reflected in his fangs. Thinking better of it he decided to stick to the more conventional methods.
Soap shifted uncomfortably as he coughed and Alejandro made a note of his symptoms; headache, cough, pain, feverish skin, rising temperature and general weakness. Although he couldn't be sure if that last one was because he was a human.
“Alright I have some sage and lavender for the headache, coriander to help reduce the fever and a mix of wormwood and mint balm for the stomach pains” Alejandro said as he sorted through the glass jars.
Leaning in closer, Ghost inspected the yellow stained glass. Dried herbs and preserved creatures sat somewhat still as he picked up a jar of what looked like leeches before they were taken from him.
“Don’t bother with those. I never liked leeches, plus if he needs any bloodletting then we can you know-“ Alejandro tapped at his canines with a toothy grin.
Ghost bristled at the thought but betrayed himself as his gaze flicked over to Soap's neck, the veins outlined against his pale skin. It wouldn't come to that. Sure vampire saliva has some healing properties but Ghost couldn't help the feeling of knowing settle over him that he might just not stop if he started.
Alejandro had begun to apply his ointments across Soap's skin, rubbing them in as he muttered under his breath in a language Ghost couldn't recognise. The room was filled with the smell of aged herbs and lavender as he worked. Once it was rubbed in he stepped back like an artist examining the fruits of their labour. Soap was laid out like he'd just rolled through a confused meadow with petals and leaves staining his pale skin. He was still feverish but the shaking had stopped and he wasn't groaning as much, if that could be considered an improvement. "Alright we should check back in on him tomorrow but until then he needs space". Alejandro said packing away his bag but leaving it on the table, just in case.
"That sounds good" Rudy nodded, already dragging Alejandro out of the room, leaving Ghost standing over Soap's bed. Watching the stunted rise and fall of his breaths even in sleep. This was different from all the other times he'd done it. Ghost couldn't remember when he'd first started watching Johnny sleep but when he first found himself at the man's bedside it had settled something in him that he hadn't realised he'd lost control. He remembered the peaceful look on his face, not the same as the dead look on the others, but one full of life. Everything about this felt wrong, he knew Soap tossed and turned in his sleep, never one to stay put even awake, but now the only movement was the uneven rise and fall of his chest. His face contorted in a look of discomfort, so out of place. Ghost just wanted to wipe it away and replace it with a serenity he couldn't provide. He could tell this wasn't a restful slumber, this was a necessity, to store energy till Soap's body could recover. For a second Ghost wondered if this would be how Soap reacted to being bitten. If his body would treat his touch as a disease. A small part hoped so, for Johnny's sake.
Just as Ghost turned to leave he stopped. A low, muffled voice calling out, "Ghost...". In his delirious state Soap had rolled over, his arm hanging over the edge of the bed uncomfortably, weakly gripping the end of Ghost's cloak. "Ghost..." he said again, this time more urgent.
"Shhhhhh. It's alright. Just rest", Ghost muttered in a gentleness that was foreign to him, as he unhooked Soap's hand and tucked him back into bed, making sure to leave enough room for him to breathe this time. "I'll be back to check tomorrow". That was a lie, Ghost knew he'd be keeping an eye on Soap even after the sun came up.
As he was leaving he shouldn't have heard the whispered "Thank you" as Soap fell back into his fitful sleep but he did and something he didn't want to name settled comfortably in his chest as he turned the lights off and shut the door.