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Owain was never one to neglect his health. Part of being a good knight was to maintain responsibility for not just the duties to your monarch but to yourself as well. After all, one could not protect your charge if your own self was in need of care. This fact led to Owain rarely ever finding himself sick or, if he did, needing any assistance in such a state.
That being said, Owain was not prepared for whatever ailment had found itself fit to coil around the inside of his chest and turn his brain into mush. He wagered that it had been some form of the illness that the previous red monarch carried, passing it onto one of their own mages and now him, but whatever it was, it refused to leave Owain, lingering on him and worsening as the days went on.
Granted, Owain's current schedule did not help with his condition. Ever since the last battle between the kingdoms, there had been far fewer hands and even more tasks to complete to construct the Blue Kingdom back to its proper glory. The few capable hands that still remained were also rather hard to corral and coordinate, especially since most were new arrivals to these lands. On top of it all, the recent change in monarchy meant many new decrees and relations among the group that was left to take care of the kingdom. So many petty squabbles. So many mistakes to fix. So many projects to finish with such little help.
One such project was, of course, the jousting range, or lists to give the proper term. He had been working on that beach for days, setting up the stands and terraforming the landscape, to ensure both kingdoms could properly settle smaller disputes without leading to bloodshed. The project idea was his own, so he bore the responsibility of building it without seeking assistance. The beach area was rather far from both kingdoms, so it wouldn't be wise if too many from the blue side came to help him anyway. This was one of the reasons why he allowed Kitty of all people to assist in the lists.
"You're going to have to get used to water eventually," Owain said as his feet dragged through the shallow waters. He carried a rather large post over his shoulder as he pulled himself to shore.
Kitty stood on the shoreline with a shovel in hand. She tasked herself with extending the land to provide more space to stand. The rogue stopped her digging, visibly tensing as she watched Owain's wet armor pass her by. Her large green eyes squinted, mild distrust towards the knight, before scooting a few paces to the left. "No, I don't think I will, 'specially when you trick me into falling in like last time."
Owain couldn't help but smirk from underneath the mask as he turned, walking behind the rogue. When he was just out of her view, he raised a clawed hand and flicked droplets in her direction. As soon as the water hit her bare shoulders, Kitty shrieked and practically jumped five feet in the air. She whirled around, feather and scarf flapping from the quick motion, and all but scowled at the knight while he continued to walk away. "Do not do THAT!" she whined, breath seething into almost a hiss.
A soft chuckle escaped Owain as he kept his attention ahead. His joy, though, paused after taking in too sharp of breath. He fell into a mild coughing fit. The post on his shoulder wobbled, making his own body tilt just a bit. He readjusted his hold on the log and continued on with a sigh.
His illness was running worse today. Worse than the past week when the first of the symptoms started. It made his breathing run short and his muscles ache. Now, he found his steps slow even outside the water as he trekked across the sand. The log from the old dock felt heavier than usual. When he reached the pile of waterlogged wood, he let out a painful grunt when he lowered the post and tossed it in with the rest. He leaned over, placing a hand on his knee to catch his breath.
"Is Lion okay?" Kitty asked from a little ways behind. Her tone softened, portraying a mixture of confusion and concern.
Owain clenched his jaw, realizing his mistake. He swallowed his discomfort and stood straight up again.
"I'm fine," he answered quietly. His words were followed by more short breaths, congestion in the lungs. He swallowed, silently exhaling through the mouth. Suddenly, his helmet felt very suffocating; very warm, despite the sun already setting. Owain looked over his shoulder, taking in the last few rays of sunlight sinking into the ocean.
He should head back soon. He would be no good to anyone if he continued on like this.
Owain looked back over the slowly forming lists. The two large stands were almost finished, and the tilt and padded sand was already in place.
Not too much left, Owain thought. He nodded at his work. Well... His and Kitty's, if he wanted to be fair.
Speaking of the cat, he spotted her movements among the growing shadows. She had seemingly abandoned the digging and turned towards placing down wooden planks on the top of the stands. They still had yet to create the boxed seats for the monarchs, so she had begun construction on that, or tried to at least. While Kitty did appear to have an eye for architecture, unlike Owain, she still lacked the experience and basic knowledge of quite a few things.
One of those things happened to be not knowing how to properly secure the planks she put down.
Owain could hear the small grunts of frustration from the woman as she attempted to hammer in a nail. He waited patiently for her to give an honest try, but after the clunky whacks lasted for about a minute, he finally spoke up. "Alright, let's stop for today," he called out, hating that the raised volume made him sound hoarse. He quietly cleared his throat before heading in the direction of his chests.
He withered at how stiff his movements felt, and after he packed his tools away for the evening, he found his face beginning to sweat. His brow furrowed in disapproval.
"I need to get home," he muttered to himself.
"Are we not continuing lessons?" Kitty asked from the top of the stands. Owain looked up, seeing her wide eyes glow slightly among the faint torchlight.
"No, it's late, and you still have yet to prove that you've learned everything you can from this land," he said.
"But I have!" Kitty announced in defense. "I-I learned Cherri's f-father can make fire, the Neck Romancer sometimes cheats at Farkle, Cam explained how different ways humans could catch bug, Katie told me different names of weapons and how to patch up wounds-"
"Yes, but again, you still have much to learn, building is one example," Owain countered while he motioned towards the hammer still in the rogue's hand.
Kitty looked down at the tool before slipping into a pout. "I am trying, but it is hard to not bend nails. I hit my fingers sometimes too..."
"Right... " Owain watched her for a moment as silence fell between them.
"...Will you teach me how to use-"
"No," Owain said. When he noticed the frown deepening over her face, he added, "Not tonight at least."
Kitty sighed. She glanced back down at the tool before tightening her grip over the handle. "Fine, then I guess I'll practice some more until then."
"Suit yourself," Owain replied while he turned away to head in the direction of the shoreline. He spotted his boat in the sand and moved to grab an end. With his body crawling at a snail's pace now, it felt like an eternity for the boat to finally touch the water. Sweat continued to roll down his brow while he felt his muscles being pulled from the mere push of the large boat. He swallowed a groan that threatened to slip from his lips.
He stopped. He took a quiet breath, as raspy as it sounded. He brushed off the throbbing headache that started to erupt through his skull.
What was his problem? He needed to get a hold of himself. He had faced many injuries in the past that were far more unbearable than a mere cold. He blinked away the exhaustion that threatened to pull on his eyelids, setting his jaw from the frustration. He must keep a respectable appearance and not show weakness, especially in the presence of someone from the enemy kingdom.
And mentioning the cat once again, what absolutely did not help with Owain's current state was the constant knocking of wood behind him, along with the soft yelps of pain. Kitty continued to hammer away at the piece of wood, likely bending several nails and probably denting the plank altogether.
The repeated noise squirmed inside Owain's ears and doubled the ache in his head to the point he just wanted it all to stop.
"Alright, alright, enough," he conceded, forcing down the irritation that bubbled up in his tone. When he looked back at Kitty, witnessing how focused she was on her task, any lingering anger he carried melted. He knew it wasn't fair, and it wasn't like he had much remaining energy to get angry with her. The noise stopped immediately after. Kitty turned to him mid-swing. "I'll show you how to use the tool, but you have to stop once we're finished."
Kitty paused a moment more. She seemed to be taking in Owain with her sharp gaze, yet there was not obviously much she could see with his armor. "Okay," she agreed before falling into a smile.
Owain left his boat where it was. He did not enjoy the thought of sitting inside and feeling the swaying current at the moment. Perhaps putting his mind on something else would settle the queasiness, and of course, he hated that was even a problem for him.
He made his way over to the stands, and with a sigh, he pulled himself up the incline, marching with his head held high.
Just give a few tips, then be done with it, he thought to himself. He agreed on that plan. Anything he could focus on. Anything he could do to forget about these symptoms. He was growing annoyed with himself. It was becoming harder to breathe, and the height of the stands was beginning to make him quite dizzy. How could he call himself a knight if he couldn't even-
"Lion?" Owain only saw Kitty's concerned gaze for a split second before both her and the world started to tilt. By the time he realized what was happening, it was far too late as he tipped over the side of the stands and landed fast first into the sand, unable to move. Owain grunted from the impact, and the world went dark soon after.
...
Kitty fell silent. She blinked for a second. Her brain replayed the sight she had just witnessed, but once she heard that sickening thud, Kitty leaped to her feet and crawled over to the edge of the stands. Her first thought was to tease Lion about his clumsiness, being unable to land on his feet like herself and other cats.
When she looked down at the sandy shore, though, all possible jabs dissolved from her tongue. Owain wasn't moving. He was still as a board. Almost like he was-
The hair on the back of Kitty's neck stood on end before she jumped down, landing perfectly on her feet beside the unmoving knight. She held her breath for a second, swallowing the sudden tightness in her throat. "Big Kitty?" she asked while placing her hands on his back. She began shaking him lightly. Tension started to seep into her muscles, suffocating her lungs. The sight before her was painfully familiar.
It wasn't until she heard a soft groan from within the helmet that Kitty was finally able to breathe again. She exhaled, shoulders sinking. She then leaned down to get closer to his mask. "Is Lion okay? What made you fall?"
When she was closer, her ears started to pick up the faintest of breath. It was quick, shallow, ragged. After a few beats, there was an answer. "'m... fine."
Kitty frowned. "You do not sound fine." She lifted her head to look over the golden armor. She finally noticed the smallest rise of his chest. Other than that, he did not move. "Are you hurt or-"
When she picked up a barely audible cough, Kitty received her answer. "Oh... You have caught bug." Her expression withered from hearing another jagged inhale, clogged and stuffed. Suffocating. "Big Kitty?"
"...W-Warm." The word was so faint. She almost didn't hear it. It made Kitty frown with concern.
"It is not warm. It is actually bit chilly," Kitty answered while scanning over the terrain. She took in the beach that was illuminated by torches and the growing moonlight above. She looked back down, squinting her eyes at the mask. "Heavy armor is likely cause. Probably hard to breathe too."
When she did not receive an answer, Kitty looked around again until she spotted a boulder close to the rocky cliffs behind the stands. It was a perfect spot to prop something up.
Taking another glance down at Owain, Kitty made up her mind and grabbed a hold of his shoulders. Of course, the task of actually moving the large man was daunting to say the least. Loud clanks of armor and yelps filled the air. Kitty finally let out a yowl in frustration when she only managed to roll the knight over once, falling to her knees in a cold sweat soon after.
"Lion, y-you are very heavy..." she breathed before wiping her brow. Her annoyance then turned to concern when she picked up the shallow breaths again.
She leaned back down to his level. "Please, you must get up. I cannot help if you do not..." She trailed off, not seeing even the slightest notice of a response. A wave of sadness filled her while the feather on her hat dipped to match her mood.
Then, a new thought came to her mind. She looked down at the knight, who was now laying on his back. She stared at the gleaming helmet in front of her. The mask she had grown accustomed to the past few weeks. It was something that filled Kitty with joy any time she saw it, even if it was just to send teases towards the big lion's grumpiness. It did not matter to her whatever it was that was underneath the mask. He was her teacher and her friend, at least she had hoped for the latter to be true. She liked the helmet. She liked Big Kitty. That was all she cared about.
Yet now, to even her own surprise, Kitty found her fingers reaching for the edges of the golden mane. If Big Kitty needed to breathe better, then the mask was not going to-
Just as Kitty's hand grazed the helmet, a clawed hand shot up and wrapped itself around her wrist. Her eyes widened. The grip was not tight. Maybe it was too weak to do so, but his intent was clear. "Don't..." he said in a low tone. His voice was rough, but it carried more volume now. More awareness.
Kitty's frown grew. "But it is making it hard to breathe-"
"Don't... Kitty..." he rasped before slipping into another cough. His words were firm, but Kitty picked up the faintest plea behind them, even if the knight would never admit to it.
Kitty pulled her hand away. Her gaze fell to her lap soon after. She bit her lip while her mind thought back to her first lesson with Owain. She thought of the rules that were required of her to follow.
Listen to Big Kitty, she thought to herself. Her stomach squirmed from the conflict. She began racking her brain with ideas, clearly not wanting to just leave Owain as he was. Don't leave Big Kitty, she remembered as well.
Big Kitty needed to breathe better, and she should also check him for what kind of bug he may have, as Cam had taught her recently. Yet, she was also supposed to listen to Big Kitty and keep the promise that she would listen.
Kitty's own head started to hurt as she groaned. She leaned down further towards the sandy floor, reopening her eyes to watch the grains just below her knees. Her green gaze then landed on the tail end of her scarf. The long fabric laid over the sand, lifting just slightly when the wind picked up.
A new thought dawned on her. Kitty recalled witnessing Apo do it once to demonstrate her skills to some of the red kingdom members. The moon knight tied fabric over her eyes and used her other senses, as she put it, to find and slice the debris that was thrown in her direction.
Apo did not need to see in order to protect her princess. Kitty didn't need to either to help Lion.
Right away, Kitty picked up the yellow fabric, loosened it around her neck, and began to wrap it over her eyes. She tied the ends together into a tight knot, ensuring that it did not slip. Once she was certain that her vision was completely darkened, Kitty took a breath before reaching out. She found Lion's shoulder and rested it there as a form of comfort. "I cover eyes now, Big Kitty. I cannot see face."
When she was met with silence, Kitty searched for the golden mane once again. She grabbed hold of the metal and began to lift.
A sharp breath. A hand finding her wrist again. "Kitty-"
"I promise, I will not look," Kitty reassured, gaining a warm smile. "I keep promises, remember?"
She did not receive an answer. Yet, very slowly, the hand around her wrist loosened, allowing Kitty to continue. With both hands now, she grabbed the sides of the helmet and pulled.
There was a soft clank of metal. The helmet, no longer attached to its owner, laid warm in her palms. Her thumbs rubbed over the surface, feeling the slight bumps of what she guessed was the mane. Her fingers found the smooth part of the face and discovered a few scratches just below the eyes.
When another cough filled the air again, Kitty was yanked back to the present. She set down the helmet and leaned further towards where she guessed the knight's face would be. It was then she tried recalling the words from Cam as he rambled about the art of healing, specifically when identifying sickness.
List symptoms, Kitty remembered. It was a big word she didn't quite understand. It had something to do with spotting what was wrong with the person, she guessed.
"Coughing is not good thing," Kitty determined once the sound slipped from Owain's throat again. Her ears then picked up the shallowness of his breaths once more. He was nearly panting with how fast they came. "Breaths fast too."
When she assessed both symptoms, Kitty raised her hand with a new thought. She also remembered Cam showing her this too. A good indication of someone being sick was if their foreheads were unnaturally warm. Her fingers searched until landing on what could only be hair.
The sensation made Kitty pause. Lion did have an actual mane, but it felt short, soft. The hair was damp, likely from sweat. Some strands stuck to his skin, and that's when Kitty found his forehead. Owain squirmed slightly from the contact, face twisting. "Wha... What are you-"
Kitty rather rudely shushed him. "I check sym-symptoms."
After receiving a begrudging sigh from the lion, Kitty returned to her task. Her palm now rested practically on the crown of his head, and she lingered there again, surprised to find herself so taken aback by the fact that he had skin to begin with. It was such a contrast to the hard metal she had grown used to seeing for so long. His face was soft, squishy as any other human, and incredibly warm to the touch, as she feared.
"You do have fever," Kitty said, letting her hand move down to his cheek to feel even more sweat, despite the chilling air around them. She recoiled from the feeling before moving her hand away. She wiped her palm on the knight's chest plate while shaking her head. "Big Kitty is too warm," she muttered. Sorrow seeped into her words again. With more determination than ever, Kitty rose to her feet.
She remembered this part of the healing lessons. She needed to cool Owain down to drop his fever. Katie had mentioned to her that whenever she was finished with training, and she was all warm and sweaty, she found a nice cold wet rag to help.
So, Kitty went to work. After ensuring she was a safe distance from Owain, Kitty removed the fabric from her eyes and headed for the chests. She pulled out a bucket before making a beeline for the ocean. Despite the sloshing waves taunting her, making her skin crawl with discomfort, she dipped the bucket down under and collected what she needed. Before turning around in the direction of Owain, Kitty secured the blindfold once more and carefully made her way across the sand.
There were a couple times she stumbled, spilling a bit of the water. She recoiled when a few drops sprinkled her skin, but she kept moving forward. When her foot met what she guessed was Owain's arm, Kitty pushed aside the bucket and knelt down once again. She pulled a piece of wool from her pockets and dipped it into the bucket. Her fingers brushed against the nearly freezing liquid and shivered. She pulled the soggy wool back out and twisted it with both hands, just as Katie did with her own rags.
Once the excess water was wrung out, Kitty then used her free hand to search for Lion's face. Her fingers found the rough stubble of hair on his chin. Not really a beard. It felt more like just slight overgrowth, like he did not have time to shave that day.
After moving her hand away, Kitty reached down with the wool and began to wipe his cheeks and forehead of sweat. Owain had been rather silent up until that point, probably fallen asleep, yet the contact made him stir. A low gruff came from the back of his throat as soon as the wet fabric touched his face. He then turned his face away just out of her reach.
Kitty's own features scrunched up, irritated. She used her other hand to grab his chin again to keep him in place. "Stubborn Lion," she huffed before continuing. She dunked the wool back in the bucket, twisted it, and repeated the task of cleaning his face. Eventually, she ended the routine by laying the wool down across the knight's forehead, keeping the cool fabric right against his burning skin.
She settled back on her knees after that, allowing her nerves to calm down as she inhaled slowly. While she still couldn't see, her eyes still trailed over the terrain, listening to the soft sounds of the night. The chill air brushed her bare shoulders, but it only soothed her shaky limbs. It grounded her racing heart while her tense shoulders eased. She did all that she could to help at the moment.
Still, she refused to lose Lion like this. She would never want to lose Lion. Ever.
A sense of protectiveness settled inside her chest, making her posture straighten. One of the rules from Owain was to protect little kittens, and while Owain was by no means little or a kitten, he still needed protecting at this moment, whether he wanted it or not.
After a few minutes of silence, Kitty realized that Owain's quick breaths had begun to ease, settling himself in a much calmer state. Kitty reached out to remove the wool and place a hand back over his forehead. "Hm, still warm... but less sweaty, at least." She grinned at the improvement before dunking the wool back into the bucket and repeating her cycle.
"I promise I won't leave, Big Kitty... Not until you are better," she stated once the wool was placed neatly over his head once again. After that, she returned to her silence, waiting patiently as the knight drifted in and out of slumber.
~~~~~