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It had been three days since they left the Storm Spire to return to Katolis. At first, Rayla wasn’t sure if she would be welcomed, but after a talk with Ezran and Callum assuring her she was their family, she felt a bit more confident.
Still, and even more, now that she’d earned their love and trust, she wanted to keep them safe at all costs.
Their aunt Amaya had given the guards specific instructions to keep the prince and king of Katolis safe.
Nevertheless, Rayla was taking into her own hands that matter, making sure that yes, they were safe but not bored. Especially Ezran, she looked for ways to play with him during the day while they traveled. And with Callum, she was taking good care of the wounds the fight with Kasef had left.
They had more supplies than before, but the food was reduced because there was a large group going back, and everyone needed to eat at least once a day.
So now Rayla was sneaking out of the camp to grab some moonberries and fruits for the boys.
A cold breeze bustled her and she shivered, hugging herself. Her limbs felt heavy after days of walking and fighting and keeping everyone alive. And the nightmares didn’t help, no matter how tired she was after waking up from one she couldn’t go back to sleep, so she used that time to explore the area they would walk on as soon as everyone was ready.
Tonight she dug deeper into the forest because all the nearby bushes were clear of anything edible. Dragging her feet, she completed her mission and returned to the camp.
Callum and Ezran were playing inside their tent when Rayla entered, sneezing.
“Bless you,” said Ezran trying to be polite and not ambush Rayla for the food. He hadn’t had a complete meal in days, the portions were small and perfectly distributed, so Rayla, thoughtful as always, got them some extra delicious fruit.
“What?” She said, wiping her nose.
“Oh, in Katolis when someone sneezes we say ‘bless you’” he explained.
Rayla shook her head. “Why would you do that?”
“Just for politeness,” his brother answered, reaching for Rayla’s hand and urging her to sit down next to them.
The tent wasn’t that big, but it was enough for them. On their first night going back to Katolis, the guards and Opeli offered Ezran a tent for himself, but he didn’t want to be alone and decided for him, Callum, and Rayla to share a tent to honor their new little family.
“I brought this” Rayla took out a little sac and put it between them, then she crawled to her side of the tent and cuddled.
“Are you okay?” Asked Callum “You seem a bit, uhm, tired”
“I’m fine, Callum, it’s just a bit cold, that’s all”
With widened eyes, the brothers exchanged a look.
“Rayla it’s crazy hot in here”
“Outside it wasn’t.”
Since the tent was only enough for one large pad, they couldn’t walk, Callum crawled to Rayla’s side, placing a hand on her shoulder.
“I’m okay” Rayla repeated. “I just need some sleep”
Callum knew insisting would only anger her, so instead he passed her a blanket and returned with Ezran.
He’d hoped he would see her wrapped in his arms when he woke, but Rayla was already up and outside when Callum opened his eyes.
Trying not to disturb his brother, he exited the tent. Rayla was sitting on a fallen tree branch nearby, one of her blades in her hands.
“Hey, what are you doing?” He asked sitting next to her.
Her cheeks were flushed, Callum thought she must have been up for hours now and the sun may have burned her.
“Oh, nothing, just making sure everything is under control” She looked at him, and Callum’s heart fluttered, he loved the way her eyes shone with the sunlight.
“Well, maybe you didn’t know but we’ve many guards here, you can go back to sleep if you want,” he said lively.
“It’s fine, I couldn’t sleep anyway”
“Oh? More nightmares?”
Lately, nightmares have haunted her, and he and Ezran.
Some nights one of them would wake up sweating or even hyperventilating, and the other two would try to calm them down, and they decided that for more comfort and safety the one with nightmares would take the place in the middle because Ezran argued that being in the middle makes everyone feel more appreciated and loved.
“Not quite. I can’t even close my eyes” Rayla’s grip tightened around the handle of her blade “Every time I do, Viren is there and my parents they aren’t, or well, they’re…”
“Hey, it’s okay, you don’t need to say it,” Callum placed a hand over hers “Unless you want to, in that case, you can talk to me about it”
A small smile crossed her lips.
“Thank you, Callum”
“You don’t need to thank me, Rayla, I'm here for you.”
She flickered. “I love you.” She kissed his forehead before jumping off the branch “Well, I think I should go to recollect some berries for breakfast, I’m sure Bait ate the ones I brought yesterday”
“Wait!” Callum said, standing up to meet her. He caressed her cheek, Rayla leaned into his touch, his brow furrowed. “Rayla your skin is burning.” His hand moved to her equally hot forehead “I think you have a fever.”
Rayla rolled her eyes “Of course not, I’m well, it’s just the sun probably.”
“Yesterday you were cold when it was hot, and the day before that you shivered in your sleep, and you haven’t been eating well even though you’re the one who brings the food for Ez and I” His mind was racing with all the signs of Rayla’s sickness he hadn’t noticed till now.
As if to prove his point, Rayla couldn’t resist a sneeze.
Grabbing her hand, he dragged her back to their tent and asked her to lie down even if she couldn’t sleep. Not making any effort could make her feel better.
Even though Rayla’s complaints were merely whispers because Ezran was still sleeping, he woke up with a confused look on his face.
“You are red,” he said to Rayla, yawning.
Callum and Rayla giggled.
“She’s sick,” said Callum “And I’m trying to convince her to get some rest but she keeps arguing she doesn’t need it” he accused her.
Rayla rolled her eyes “We need breakfast”
“We can eat food from the supplies”
The elf lifted an eyebrow “Oh, yeah, because eating fish as breakfast is delicious”
Ezran grimaced, Callum glared at him, and he understood his point “I mean, maybe it isn’t that bad?”
Rayla’s mouth hung open “I thought you were on my side, Ez.”
Callum sighed “You’re unwell, and you need some rest, I’m gonna go ask if we have a doctor around. Ezran, please make sure Rayla rests."
The little boy nodded, and his brother left. With a growl, Rayla let herself fall to the fluffy pad. She immediately shivered.
“So when you woke up trembling last night it wasn’t because of a nightmare, right? You were already sick,” Ezran pointed out.
“I guess. I haven’t been sick like this in months.”
The last time she remembered catching a fever was when the letter saying her parents had fled away arrived. She had been so crushed she fell sick, but Ethari and Runaan took good care of her and in less than a week she was back on her feet. Her eyes stung with tears at the memory.
Ezran laid down beside her, and even Bait set himself near them.
Rayla sneezed again and tried to cover herself with a blanket before Ezran took it away “Hey! Found your own blanket, Ez.”
He giggled “No, I don’t want the blanket, it’s summer, and it’s hot, but also it won’t make you any good if you wrap yourself in it. You need to be cool, not hot”
Her teeth chattered “I think I’m cool”
“It’s the fever acting. My…” he stopped himself, his dad always told him that when he was sick, but all things considered perhaps it was better if he didn’t bring that up. “Callum always tells me that”
Rayla growled and cuddled. Now Ezran could see her whole body shaking. After a few moments, she turned to him. “You know, maybe going outside and doing something productive like getting us some actual breakfast will make me feel better.”
Ezran shook his head, he wasn’t used to dealing with this strong-headed side of Rayla, that was usually Callum’s work “Nope, you’re staying here because if you don’t Callum will get mad at me, and you don’t want him getting mad at me, do you?”
With another growl, Rayla tossed around once more hugging herself tightly.
“Why don’t you tell me a bedtime story?” Ezran proposed, wanting to distract her.
Rayla scoffed “You’re not going to sleep, Ez.”
“Of course not, but I love hearing your stories”
On the nights he couldn’t sleep during their journey, Rayla always told him a story or sang a lullaby to help calm his mind.
“Alright,” she said “Once upon a time, there was a wee kid, but she was special, even though she was an elf she loved hanging out with human kids.” She turned again, her eyes fixed on the tent ceiling. “Showing them Xadia’s most incredible places, catching rides on unicorns, and doing magic tricks to look the expression of awe in their eyes.”
“The child was loved amongst young children, either elf or human, kids adored her. Too bad adults didn’t share the feeling. They were afraid she was hauling their precious sons and daughters into dangerous adventures, so they started to chase her across the world. It’s unknown if anyone ever caught her, but it is said that when the last unicorn died, she did too, for she shared a unique and special bond with the creatures.”
Ezran took a few moments to process what he had just heard, it seemed like the kid was the most generous wholehearted person ever.
Yet he didn’t get time to say his thoughts out loud because Callum opened the tent and he along with Aunt Amaya and Gren came in.
“I heard someone is sick” she signed and Gren translated.
Rayla sat down abruptly “I’m fine!”
Callum looked annoyed, and Ez felt for her because even as she complained, she couldn’t stop her body from telling the truth. She wasn’t fine.
Amaya’s face fell, of all people she didn’t expect the elf to be sick. Yet, she’d proven trustworthy and kind to the boys so she may as well return the favor.
“Aunt Amaya will help us,” noted Callum. She knows a bunch of medical herbs that will help you.” He kneeled at his girlfriend’s side and urged her to lie down.
“What are the symptoms?”
“I’m cold almost all the time,” Rayla answered. "My head hurts, and I’ve lost my appetite.”
“Anything else?” Asked Amaya.
Rayla shook her head. Amaya approached her and placed a hand on her forehead, Rayla was startled at the contact.
“You’ve got a cold,” she signed. “Which means you shouldn’t have any blanket on your feet.”
“I told her so!” Exclaimed Ezran somewhat proud he had been right.
The girl rolled her eyes at him. Amaya smiled at his youngest nephew.
“Ez, could you go find some lukewarm water?” She took out a pink cloth and gave it to him.
Ezran nodded and went out.
“While I won’t diagnose anything, I know some things that could help you. I’ll go get them. When Ezran returns put the wet cloth on her forehead, leave it a few minutes till it starts to get cold, and do it again till the water gets somewhat cold, okay?”
Callum nodded, looking from his aunt to Rayla.
“It’ll help with the fever and headache.”
“Thank you, Aunt Amaya.”
Amaya smiled and squeezed Callum’s shoulder before leaving with Gren to find the medicines for Rayla.
Callum intertwined his fingers with Rayla’s and stayed in silence until Ezran returned with a bowl of water and the cloth submerged in it.
“Thank you, Ez.” His brother took out the cloth and twisted it to get rid of the excess water before resting it on Rayla’s forehead.
Her teeth chittered, she complained, shaking her head and closing her eyes with force “It feels cold.”
“It’s actually pretty warm,” said Callum “Just try to stand it a few seconds. You’ll feel better after.”
“How do Moonshadow elves relieve fever?” Asked Ezran in another effort to take Rayla’s mind out of the pain.
“Pretty much the same,” her voice was shaky “The difference is there are many elves who know spells to cure simple sickness. Runaan and Ethari took me to them at the minimum sign I may be sick because I hate being sick.”
Callum and Ezran exchanged a look “We can see that,” Callum said.
Rayla shivered again and wrapped her arms around her middle.
“Umm, Soren was gonna do a bonbon fire, I’ll go help him and return with bonbons for everyone!” Proposed Ezran.
His brother smiled and nodded, but Rayla didn’t say or do anything more than continue to shiver and move her feet.
Ez felt a little bad leaving her like that, but there wasn’t much he could do now and he felt like she and Callum needed time to spend alone together now that they were a couple. And also if he didn’t help with the bonbons Bait would eat all of them.
“I just wanted you to know that it’s okay to be sick, Rayla, we all have got through it at some point.”
Her lips trembled as she tried to form a smile “I know. But I didn’t want to be a burden for you and Ez.”
Callum could almost laugh at the stupidity of that “You’re not a burden, Ray.”
“I’m the one who’s supposed to take care of you two, not the other way around.”
In her head, she made a promise to the boys from the night they met, that she would protect them no matter what. Being sick didn’t help.
It was Callum’s turn to roll his eyes “And you have, now let us do the same,” he kissed her cheek. Her skin was burning, but he didn’t care, he peppered her face with small kisses making her laugh. “You’re gonna be back on your feet in no time, I promise.”
Rayla smiled and cupped his face “I love you.”
Callum grinned and laughed “Love you too.”