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“A Hundred and Three”
The 8:00 alarm blaring awakened Kori’ander (A.K.A. Starfire) from a deep sleep. It was time to get ready for training with the rest of the New Teen Titans. She shut off the alarm and stretched luxuriously. She felt so comfortable lying naked under the sheet that she did not want to get up. She glanced over at her bed partner, Dick Grayson (A.K.A. Nightwing). He usually jumped out of bed as soon as the alarm sounded, but not this morning. She must have really worn him out last night.
A smile spread over Kory’s face at the memory of their night together, and she propped herself up on her elbow to admire her lover. His dark hair was a tousled mess on the backdrop of his light blue pillow. Her eyes traveled down his handsome features to his muscular chest and arms. Her heart swelled with love for him as she moved closer to lay her head on his shoulder. She froze, though, when her cheek touched his unnaturally hot skin. Something was not right.
Dick stirred and half-opened his eyes. They were glassy and unfocused.
“Dick?”
He groaned in response and let his eyes close. Kory looked closer at his face and noticed his flushed cheeks.
“It is time to wake up,” she prodded. Dick shivered and groped for the blanket. Finally catching hold of it, he yanked it all the way up to his chin. Kory was confused. She had never seen Dick behave this way. The only time she had ever seen him unable to get out of bed was when he was severely injured. Her heart quickened. What was wrong with him?
Suddenly, she had an idea. She called Raven.
“Hello?”
“Raven, it is Starfire. I fear that Nightwing is under a spell!”
“Why do you think that?” Raven’s voice was calm.
“His body is hot, but he is shivering!” Kory cried, her panic rising.
“It sounds like he has a fever.” Raven said matter-of-factly.
“Fever?” Kory’s green eyes widened. She glanced back at Dick as he broke out coughing.
“Yeah, he’s sick,” Raven clarified.
“What should I do?” Kory fretted, stroking her long red hair nervously.
“He needs medicine. I’ll tell the rest of the team that he won’t be coming down today.” Raven ended the call.
Kory turned back to Dick, and was surprised to see him lifting his head and blinking at her.
“What time is it?” he rasped.
“8:08.”
Dick sat up suddenly, then grabbed his head with both hands, swaying dizzily. When the wave of dizziness passed, he swung his legs over the side of the bed.
“Where’s my costume?” he murmured, trying to stand.
“I do not think it is a good idea to-”
Whump! Dick’s legs buckled, and he face-planted on the floor, landing on top of his blue and yellow costume, which was still lying in a heap where it had fallen when he stripped out of it the night before.
“Ow…”
Kory rushed to his side, and lifted him back onto the bed.
“You have the fever,” she explained. “You cannot train today.”
Dick tried to protest, then sagged back onto the pillows.
“All right,” he sighed. His body ached all over and his throat felt like sandpaper.
At that moment, they heard running feet in the hallway, then a quick rap at the door.
“Hold on a moment!” Kory called, hastily grabbing her robe and tying it around her. Humans were funny about their preference for clothes. She opened the door, and Wally West (A.K.A. Kid Flash) peeked in.
“I heard Dick is sick,” Wally said. “Hah, that rhymed. Dick is sick.” He flashed over to the bedside.
“Hey, man. Whaddya need?” Dick’s best friend asked him. Dick answered him with a coughing fit.
“Right.” Wally flashed into the bathroom and rummaged through Dick’s medicine cabinet at super speed. He returned with a thermometer and several bottles. He stuck the thermometer in Dick’s mouth. After a minute, it beeped.
“You’ve got a fever of a hundred and three!”
“I’m hot blooded, hot blooded,” Dick sang weakly, then laughed. Kory’s eyebrows knit together in concern.
“He is becoming delirious.”
“At least his sense of humor is intact,” Wally grinned. He examined the bottles of medicine. “Ibuprofen, cough syrup, or some kind of multi-symptom flu stuff?”
“I’ll take them all,” Dick moaned. Kory filled a glass with water while Wally measured out the doses. Kory helped him sit up and take the medicines. He was being fussed over by two red-heads, but he was so miserable he couldn’t even enjoy it.
“Well, gotta go train. Be back later.’ Wally disappeared in a red blur.
“Is there anything else I can do for you?” Kory asked, stroking Dick’s hair.
“Another blanket?”
Kory found the extra blanket in the closet and wrapped him up like a burrito with only his face visible.
“There,” she smiled in satisfaction, then began to giggle.
“What?”
“You look ridiculous.”
“Thanks alot.”
“But also adorable,” Kory added, squeezing her burrito.
“Ok, I think I’ll try to go back to sleep now,” he yawned, turning onto his side.
Kory lay down behind Dick and spooned him. She was taller than him, so they fit together like two puzzle pieces. The Tamaranean princess’s body temperature was several degrees higher than a human’s, and her warmth relaxed Dick’s aching body. He drifted off to sleep.
Later in the evening, Wally returned. Kory let him in. She had stayed with Dick all day, only taking a break to go get lunch at noon.
“How you doing?” Wally asked, coming over to the bedside carrying a tupperware container.
“I feel like I’m dying,” Dick said dramatically. He sat up slowly. “What’s that?”
Wally presented the container to him with a wide smile. “Alfred’s chicken soup!”
Dick blinked at him. “You went all the way to Gotham for this?”
“Yep!”
“Wally, you didn’t have to do that.” Dick looked like he might cry.
“No big deal.” Wally produced a spoon from his pocket, and handed it to him. “Hope it helps.”
“Thank you so much.” Dick cracked open the lid and breathed in the steam. It smelled delicious, just like he remembered from his childhood. He took a few spoonfuls of broth and swallowed them slowly. The warm liquid soothed his sore throat.
“It’s a miracle! I’m cured!” he joked, then fell into a coughing fit that contradicted his words. “Well, I’m sure I’ll be better by tomorrow.”
He was not.
“Perhaps we should take you to see a doctor,” Kory suggested, after giving him his medicine.
“No,” Dick replied quickly, his voice hoarse. “All they’ll do is tell me to rest and stay hydrated.”
Kory poured him a glass of water and handed it to him. “I am worried about you.”
Dick took a few gulps of water. “I’ll be okay, Star. I’ve survived worse than this. And I’ve got you here nursing me back to health.” He touched her cheek. She leaned in to kiss his lips, but he turned his head away.
“Don’t….”
Kory drew back, looking hurt. “I am sorry,” she began.
“No, it’s…I….” It was hard to think when his brain felt thick and fuzzy like a cotton ball. “I’m… contagious,” he finally managed. “I don’t want you to get sick, too.”
“Oh,” Kory’s face cleared. “I do not know if it is possible for me to get the sickness from you.”
“Let’s not risk it,” Dick coughed. He took another sip of water, sighed, and closed his eyes for a minute.
“I hate this,” he said quietly. “I feel so useless.”
“You are not…”
“I mean, this is the worst possible time to be sick. I had planned to do special training this week. After we took out that H.I.V.E. base a few days ago, we need to be ready if they try to retaliate,” he vented, clenching his fists in frustration.
“Dick,” Kory gently turned his face to look at her. “You have trained us well. The team is ready. Trust us, as we trust you.”
“I do,” Dick assured her. “It’s just… hard to sit on the sidelines.”
“What lines?” Kory glanced around. “You are sitting on a bed.”
Dick laughed. “It just means I’m not actively involved, like… like…. being on a sports team and having to sit out and watch while the others play,” he explained.
“Oh, I see,” she laughed. “I am still learning some of your idioms.”
“I know.” His eyes met hers. “Thanks for making me laugh. Thanks for… everything you’ve done.”
“You are welcome.”
“I feel bad that you’re stuck in here taking care of me.”
Kory frowned. “I do not want to be anywhere else but with you,” she said sincerely. “You are my heart, my home, my desire.” She laid her hand over his heart.
“Oh, man, I really wish I could kiss you right now.” Dick’s blue eyes gazed into hers. “How did I get so lucky?”
Ring ring! The phone interrupted their tender moment. Kory picked it up.
“Have you been watching the news?” asked Raven.
“No, what is happening?”
“An earthquake that also caused a landslide. The team is here with me watching updates come in. We talked about it, and we want to join the rescue operation.”
Kory relayed this information to Dick, who immediately said, “Tell them to go. Those people need all the help they can get.”
“He says go,” Kory told Raven.
“We’ll get ready,” she responded.
Dick glanced at Kory as she hung up. “You, too, Starfire.”
“But…”
“It doesn’t make sense for both of us to stay here when people need rescuing. I’ll be fine on my own for a few hours.”
She nodded reluctantly. After tucking him in, she headed for the door.
“I will see you later,” she said over her shoulder, still looking worried.
“See you later,” he agreed.
After sleeping for several hours, Dick took more medicine, then made his way out of the bedroom to the elevator. He rode down to the main floor. The whole Tower was eerily quiet. On shaky legs, he reached the living room, where he flopped down on the couch. He found the remote and turned on the news.
“The Teen Titans arrived on the scene some time ago, and have been instrumental in rescuing hundreds from this deadly landslide,” the news anchor reported.
“Way to go, team,” Dick smiled. He suddenly shivered. He had been too warm in his bedroom and had stripped down to his boxer briefs. The living room felt chilly. Dick grabbed the fluffy fur throw blanket off the back of the couch and wrapped himself in it.
After watching for a while, he began to feel restless. He changed the channel to old Star Trek reruns and tried to relax. His head was throbbing. He lay down and drifted in and out while Kirk fought the Gorn.
Dick jerked awake with an uneasy feeling. The T.V. was off. All the lights were off. Everything was silent.
A power outage? he wondered as his eyes adjusted to the darkness. Then he heard a window shatter. Someone was breaking in to the Tower. His adrenaline spiked. He sprinted for the closet where they kept extra supplies. He found one of his masks and slapped it on his face. He grabbed an old utility belt from his Robin days and buckled it around his waist. There was no time to put on a full costume. He could hear footsteps.
With his night vision engaged, Nightwing scanned the living room and kitchen. Voices echoed from down the hallway attached to the living room. Nightwing dropped and forward-rolled to the other side of the couch just as the first figure appeared in the entrance. He crouched motionless, his body tense, listening.
“Place one of the charges here,” a deep voice said.
“Right,” said another. There was a beep, then the sound of footsteps walking into the living room.
“The Titans are going to have the shock of their lives when they come back and their tower is blown to hell,” sneered a third voice.
“It’s what they deserve,” growled the first. “They destroy our base, we destroy theirs.”
Nightwing’s heart raced. They were H.I.V.E. soldiers, and they were planting explosives to destroy the Titans’ Tower. Not on his watch. His eyes narrowed and his training took over. Taking a slow breath to calm himself, he peeked around the couch to evaluate the situation. In the green tint of his night vision, he counted six soldiers. Nightwing reached into one of his belt compartments and fingered the smoke pellets.
He waited for the men to come a little closer, then, holding his breath, he hurled the pellets down in front of them. As smoke billowed, Nightwing leapt out and uppercut the closest one, then dropped to sweep the man’s legs out from under him with a swift kick. His head hit the floor and he lay still. The soldiers were coughing and trying to wave the smoke away. He had to act quickly while they were still off balance. Nightwing braced his hands against the back of the couch and scissor-kicked two of them in the face simultaneously. As soon as his feet touched the ground, he launched into a backflip over their heads. Landing behind them, he hit their wrists to disarm them.
“What’s going on? Nobody’s supposed to be here!” one shouted.
“Shoot him, you morons!”
One of the soldiers pulled out his gun and started shooting. Nightwing dodged to the side. He flung a Batarang, and the gun skittered across the floor. The other two soldiers who still had guns began shooting as well, riddling the walls with bullet holes. Nightwing tucked and rolled, coming up behind them and smacking their heads together. A kidney punch sent one of them to his knees. Nightwing stepped on his wrist and wrenched the gun out of his hand. The smoke was starting to clear, and the other soldier turned to see their assailant. As Nightwing straightened up, the hard metal of a pistol whipped him in the head. He went down, feeling blood trickle down his face. The soldier aimed the gun at him.
Nightwing rolled to the side as the gun fired. He scrambled to his feet and threw all his weight into the man’s abdomen. They flew backward and crashed through a window. Shards of glass rained down on them. They landed outside, and Nightwing knocked him out with a vicious punch. He climbed back through the window. Four soldiers were spread out across the room, but only one had managed to retrieve his firearm.
Nightwing did a handspring into the living room, where he grabbed the tall floor lamp. He swung it, and the heavy base of the lamp connected with the man’s head. The soldier crumpled, dropping his gun. Nightwing grasped the long pole with both hands and used it to pin another soldier to the wall. He gagged as he tried to push the pole off his neck. Nightwing kneed him in the stomach and groin repeatedly, knocking the wind out of him. Another man grabbed Nightwing from behind. He kicked off the wall and slammed his body down on top of the soldier. A few ribs cracked beneath him.
Nightwing jumped up, breathing heavily, and looked around. Where was the last one? The final soldier jumped out at him, swinging a fist. Nightwing dodged. The soldier’s momentum made him continue to stumble forward and almost fall. He righted himself, turned, and rushed at Nightwing, screaming. At the last second, Nightwing leapt up and over him. The soldier kept going and bashed his head into the stone fireplace. He stopped moving.
The six soldiers were all down. At least three were unconscious. Nightwing pulled a rope out of his belt and tied up the two who were still moving the most. He had to go back to the closet to find more rope and some duct tape to restrain the rest. Once he was certain they were all secure, he leaned against the wall and let himself slide down to the floor. He gingerly touched the sticky blood clotting on his scalp. His head was spinning. As the adrenaline wore off, his whole body began to ache and exhaustion overcame him.
When his eyes opened, he was in his bed. His head was bandaged.
“What happened?” he groaned, touching his head injury.
“Dick, you are awake!” Kory cried. She jumped out of the chair at the bedside and hugged him, laughing with joy.
“The soldiers…” Dick tensed as he partly remembered the events of the previous night.
“The police came and took them away.” Kory stroked his face.
“How did they get through our security system?” Dick frowned.
“Cyborg thinks they had a device that shut everything down,” Kory explained. “He is working on updating the system so that will not happen again.”
“Oh, good,” Dick sighed.
“We did not return to the Tower until the early hours of the morning. We found you…” Kory’s voice faltered, and her eyes filled with tears. “We found you lying on the floor with blood on your face,” she said in a shaky voice. “I… I feared you were dead.”
“C’mon, I’m not gonna let a few H.I.V.E. soldiers take me out,” Dick said with a lopsided grin. Kory lay her head on his chest, and he patted her thick, curly hair.
“You do have a concussion,” Kory informed him. “And that means you will have to ‘sit on the sidelines’ for a few more days.”
Dick groaned. “I’m tired of being in bed.”
“You must make a full recovery before returning to your duties,” Kory said firmly, raising her head to look at him.
“Yes, Nurse Kory.”
A Few Days Later…
The 8:00 alarm blaring awakened Kory from a deep sleep. It was time to get ready for training with the rest of the New Teen Titans. She felt the bed shift as Dick sat up to turn off the alarm.
“Morning,” he smiled at her.
She yawned and stretched. “Good morning. How are you feeling?”
“Great!” He pushed back the covers and scooted toward the edge of the bed. Kory grabbed his arm and pulled him back in.
“Hey!” he protested. “We’ve gotta get up, Sleeping Beauty.”
She pulled him closer so his head rested on her breasts.
“Um, well, maybe not yet,” he amended.
“May I kiss you now, or are you still contagious?” she inquired.
“No, I mean, yes. Uh, yeah, yes, you can kiss me,” he stammered, giving her a dopey smile. Their lips met.
“Mm, I missed this,” she sighed.
“Me, too.” He kissed her again. Finally, he broke away.
“We really do have to get up,” he said reluctantly. “I don’t want to be late to training on my first day back.”
“I will kiss you more later,” Kory promised. “And then I will…” She leaned in close and whispered in his ear.
“KORY!” he cried, blushing red.
“What?” she asked innocently. “I thought you liked that.”
“I do…” he grinned at her. “Ok, later, I’m all yours.”
Some time later, after putting on their costumes, they came down to the kitchen for breakfast. The rest of the team was there, eating together and listening to music on the radio. They all welcomed Dick enthusiastically. Wally zipped over and clapped him on the shoulder.
“Glad to have you back!” he exclaimed through a mouthful of donut.
“Good to be back.” Dick straightened the tall collar of his costume.
“I can’t believe you kicked all those guys' butts while you had the flu. That’s badass, man.”
“Thanks, Wally,” Dick said. “But I think any member of this team could have done the same.”
The song on the radio ended, and a new one began.
“Hey! Dick, it’s your song!” Wally yelled as “Hot Blooded” by Foreigner came on.
“Kory, dance with me!” Dick held out his hand to her. She placed one hand in his, and the other on his chest, where it was exposed by the deep vee in his costume. Kory laughed in delight as he dipped her. She followed his lead as he moved his body to the beat. As the song came to an end, they bowed to their audience, then joined their lips in a hot-blooded kiss.