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sucker-for-sniffles · 1 month

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Did someone order a loyal knight with a bad cold and his prince who loves him dearly trying to get him to rest for once in his life? Here’s 4k words of that, please enjoy these guys who barged into my head and won’t leave

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As if negotiations in Halfford hadn’t gone poorly enough, Prince Robin thought, bouncing about uncomfortably in the back of his carriage, Sir Harper had started to catch cold a couple days into the journey home. Off of the Duke’s snot-nosed son, Robin had no doubt. The brat practically hung off Harper’s shirt all week, as if he were a fawning child rather than a man hardly any younger than Harper.

Harper made his ailment utterly unobtrusive, as always, his service unfailing. Any other company might not have realized he was ill at all. But Robin knew him too well to miss the edge of fatigue to his practiced smile, the soft sighs when he didn’t realize Robin was listening, the sneezes muffled into his cape just too often to pass off as coincidence.

And Robin knew him too well to say anything. Harper blamed himself for the disaster this trip had become, even if he didn’t want Robin to see as much. As if he ought to have prevented the storm that stalled them four days on the way to Halfford, or Duke Edward’s foul mood at the delay. With Harper on edge as he was, Robin didn’t have the words to ask after him without Harper taking it as a critique. He blamed his friend’s father for that. The old bastard was just the sort to wield “are you quite well?” as a blunt weapon.

Robin was in far too sour a mood for tact. On another day, he would walk beside the carriage and talk with Harper, but given the circumstances, he was better off sulking with the luggage. Even if he wound up with a bruise or two, he didn’t have to try so hard to bite his tongue with the creaks and clangs of the cart on the uneven road making conversation difficult already.

“It’s getting dark,” Harper called back. There was a fresh rasp to his voice accompanying the mounting congestion that marred his m’s and n’s. The poor man ought not to shout so. “If we press, we may reach an inn not long after sundown, but…”

“Let’s camp here.” Robin shifted carefully, extracting himself from the corner of the cart he’d wedged himself into. He didn’t want Harper doing any pressing.

“Very well, my lord.” A note of relief in Harper’s voice, well-masked but perceptible. The cart rumbled to a stop and creaked loudly as Harper stepped down from the driver’s seat.

Robin followed suit and crawled from the back of the cart, stretching out stiff and aching limbs. He really did prefer to walk. He circled around, intending to offer help, but paused when he saw Harper seize a fistful of his cape and bring it close to his face. His shoulders rose with his breath, once, twice—

Harper ducked into a rough, throaty sneeze, muffled harshly by the thick wool of his cape.

“Bless you.” Even that much, Robin worried would be unwelcome.

“Ah—tha’k you.” Harper dragged his cape roughly under his nose and sniffed with a determined finality. He smiled. “I am glad to see you in one piece after being tossed about like a sack of flour. What draws you to ride in the cart on roads like this, I can’t understand.” He set to unyoking the horses, leaving Robin to trail uselessly behind him.

“It isn’t so bad without armor clanging about you.” Robin rubbed his arms.

“Hah.” Harper lifted the yoke from the horses’ shoulders, a quick flash of pain crossing his face when the weight settled in his right arm. Was his shoulder bothering him, too? It was awfully cold this far north. “There’s no need to lie to me, my lord. I only wish I could give you privacy with a little more comfort.”

Robin huffed a laugh. “Alas, you are no magician. I am merely grateful my father didn’t insist on sending an entourage after us.” And he was, truly, whatever Harper might have thought. It isn’t as if thirty men could have fought off a storm that Harper couldn’t.

“Your father’s men don’t know how to leave you well enough alone,” Harper agreed, but Robin didn’t miss the doubt that flickered across his face. He set down the yoke and glanced at Robin. “Are you warm enough? The cold comes on quickly out here.”

Robin dropped his hands from his arms. “Perhaps not.” The wind was beginning to creep through the linen of his shirt without the canvas walls of the cart to block it.

“Allow me to fetch your cloak.” Harper strode past before Robin could insist on fetching his cloak himself. It was likely best to let him help, anyhow. If small, unneeded favors were what he needed to prove himself, there was no reason to protest.

Harper returned promptly with Robin’s favorite travel cloak over one arm—a thick red one, almost long enough to drag on the ground, made when Robin was young enough that there was hope he’d grow taller. “I hope you are well, my lord,” he said, fastening the cloak over Robin’s shoulders.

It took Robin a moment to process the question. “I—am. For the most part.”

Harper smiled, honest despite the tired weight to it. “I’m glad. It can be hard to tell, when you draw away from me, when I should start to worry. I hope you will never feel lonely when I am with you.”

And he squeezed Robin’s shoulder and returned to the back of the cart like he hadn’t just stung Robin senseless. He’d made Harper worry for him all this time. Since they first arrived in Halfford, no doubt, and Robin had spent every evening too exhausted by the Duke’s temper to do more than sulk in his guest room and tell Harper to explore the city without him. Harper understood, as Harper always understood, but it was hardly any wonder he’d gotten tense. Robin could be a dense little brat sometimes, he thought bitterly.

A wrenching, tightly muffled sneeze pulled Robin back to himself. He moved around to the back of the cart, where Harper had paused in tying down the rear flap to press his fingers to his temples, exhaustion written plainly on his face. The red cast of his nose was no longer faint, and the poor thing was starting to swell under Harper’s rough treatment.

“Bless you,” Robin said, anxiety creeping foolishly up his neck. Talking to Harper ought to be the easiest thing in the world. Damn this trip, damn Duke Edward, and damn Robin’s own idiocy.

The exhaustion all but vanished from Harper’s expression as he looked up and gave a quick thanks, carrying on with the canvas.

Robin twisted the edge of his cloak between his fingers and dared to ask, “Sir Harper, are you well?”

Harper paused his work for just a moment, too briefly to be noticed by anyone paying the slightest bit less attention than Robin. “I may have caught a chill back in Halfford,” he admitted, his tone carefully flat. “Do not concern yourself, my lord.”

“I shall concern myself if I like,” Robin said before he could think better of it.

Harper pulled a rope taught with a fair bit more force than seemed necessary and barked a laugh. “Of course, my lord.” He sniffed, sharp and wet, and tied off the rope, securing the canvas flap over the open back of the cart. He climbed inside without another word and started shifting things around, laying out their bedrolls and moving fallen luggage aside.

Robin sighed and leaned against the cart, pulling his cloak tight around himself. He’d misstepped already. A cold. What an absurdly unremarkable, temporary affliction to regret. As if anybody could think less of Harper for such a thing. For falling ill, for bowing to the weather. Robin could think of a few sharp words for Harper’s father, though he doubted they would do any good.

He watched the darkening sky as Harper bustled around in the cart. Some clouds were forming to the east—might it rain? The roads would be hell tomorrow if it did. Perhaps they ought to have pushed on to the inn after all.

“Does it look like rain to you?” Robin asked as Harper emerged from the carriage. He’d stripped his cape, tabard, and heavy mail, leaving him in trousers and a tunic with his sword tied around his waist.

Harper glanced up to the east, briefly pressing a gloved knuckle under his nose. “Ah—yes, most likely.” He smiled. “Worry not, my lord. You will stay quite dry in the cart.”

Robin bit his lip. “Yes, but the roads will—I will stay dry?”

“We will.” Harper sniffled and laid a hand on Robin’s shoulder. “Worry not. I am hardly infirm. I shall handle the roads tomorrow, whatever condition they may be in.”

“Of course you shall.” Robin sighed, studying Harper’s face, the faint lines of exhaustion his best efforts can’t erase. “I do not doubt your capability, but…it has been a long journey.”

“It has.” Harper squeezed Robin’s shoulder briefly and let go, looking away. Was Robin staring? “Rest in the cart. I will take care of camp and fetch you when there is dinner.”

That isn’t what Robin meant at all, but already Harper was striding away towards the horses. Robin followed him, almost jogging to keep up with his long, quick steps. “No. I will accompany you.”

“No need.” Harper didn’t slow, nor turn to Robin. “You are exhausted. Rest for tomorrow.” There was a clipped insistence to his tone so uncharacteristic that Robin was almost hurt until Harper brought both hands to his face and smothered a sneeze that seemed to tear through him and take a piece with it, leaving him staggered slightly with a few short, harshly constrained coughs.

“Bless you, Sir.” Robin took the opportunity to overtake Harper and reach the horses first. Of course—poor Harper hadn’t had a moment’s privacy since they’d left Halfford. If Robin couldn’t convince him to let his guard down before him, he could at least give him a few moments alone. “I assure you, I am quite capable of watering the horses myself. We shall both to bed sooner if I help.” He took both horses’ leads without waiting for a response and clicked at them to follow.

“…very well, my lord.” If Harper was trying to disguise the relief in his voice, he didn’t manage it very well. He sniffed thickly and dropped his hands from his face. “The river is a short way south of here.” He pointed, but Robin could hear the rushing water already.

Robin nodded. “I shall return soon.”

And he led the horses off. This was absurd. Why should the two of them play these games even when alone? Harper’s father was not here to scold him, nor anybody who might report to him or the King. Why should decorum prevent Robin from speaking frankly with his dearest friend? He ought to order Harper to rest as much as he was able.

The river was further than Robin anticipated, and by the time he returned night had all but fallen, the air damp and bitterly cold, and the rain clouds in the east were unmistakably nearer. At least he was able to spare Harper the trek—the fool would have left without his cloak—but he was relieved nonetheless to see a fire roaring already by the time he returned, a steaming pot hung over it. He secured the horses and joined Harper beside it on a fallen log, noting with pleasure that Harper had remembered himself and donned a cloak.

“Back at last, my lord?” Harper smiled at Robin as he sat down, a touch of mischief in his expression. “I had forgotten how much longer a walk can be on shorter legs.”

Robin shoved his shoulder, gasping in mock offense. “You know perfectly well how quickly I walk.”

“How slowly.” Harper’s grin flashed into a grimace and he turned away from Robin, lifting a fistful of his cloak to his face. His breath wavered perilously for a moment, and he crumpled, smothering a heavy sneeze into the fabric.

“Bless you.” He sounded worse, Robin thought.

Harper coughed roughly before recovering his breath. “Hah. Tha’k you.” An attempt at sniffling audibly caught in stuffed-shut sinuses and Harper cleared his throat, such an unmistakeably unwell sound that Robin wanted to drag him to the cart to sleep and damn his feelings on the matter.

“What do you think of breaking into that mead the Duke refused?” he said instead. “My father won’t expect it back, and it seems a fine night to warm ourselves up.” And perhaps a bit of drink would help ease Harper’s nerves.

“If you’d like.” Harper tipped the pot over the fire towards him with a ladle, his other hand keeping the hem of his cloak pressed under his nose. “Though I hope you don’t need drink to find my company tolerable.”

Robin laughed. “Simply unbearable, being alone with the likes of you. It’s near enough to make me miss Duke Edward’s hospitality.” He stood and brushed dirt from the back of his cloak. “I simply can’t face a sober evening with company who prefers me to a horse’s ass.”

That earned a huff of laughter from Harper. “I’ve been looking at a horse’s ass all day. You’re a far better sight.”

“He doesn’t mean it, Dapple,” Robin called to the horse in question, who flicked an ear in utter disinterest. He patted her side on his way back to the cart.

It was dark inside the cart with the rear flap blocking out the firelight, but it was easy enough to find the mead, bundled up in a spare cloth and tied to the side of the cart to ensure it didn’t bounce around and break. There ought to be some handkerchiefs about, too. Robin recalled seeing a couple at the bottom of his bag, so he took a moment to dig them out.

When he returned to the campfire, Harper had taken the pot off the fire and was doling out stew to travel bowls. Robin offered a handkerchief without a word.

Harper took it with a nod of thanks and swiped quickly under his nose, though by the sound of things that wasn’t nearly enough.

The stew was fine enough, good for being scrounged together from diminishing fresh supplies. Harper called it a last proper meal before returning to dried meat and stale crackers. The mead was better. Robin’s father wasn’t one to spare expenses when it came to obsequious gifts.

“The one gift the Duke’s given us,” Robin said after the two were halfway through the bottle.

Harper snorted. “His generosity shall not go unremembered.” He took a swig from the bottle, then passed it urgently back to Robin. “Pardon—” His breath caught and he twisted away from Robin, though the sneeze seemed to toy with him, keeping his breath hitching uncertainly for several seconds before tearing out of him with a vocal desperation that almost startled Robin.

“Bless you.”

“Ngh.” Belatedly, Harper lifted the handkerchief to his face and blew his nose hard, though, by the sound of it, not to much effect. “Blast this cold.”

He must have been feeling calmer if he was complaining, Robin noted with pleasure. Though whether that was thanks to the mead or to dinner and company, he couldn’t guess. “Poor thing,” he said as lightly as he could manage, rubbing Harper’s shoulder.

Harper huffed, with laughter or irritation. “You needn’t tease me, my lord.”

“I’m not!” With feigned offense, Robin set the bottle on the ground to fold his arms. Harper picked it idly back up. “Can’t a man express his sympathies for a friend?”

“Of course, my lord.” Harper took another swig. “But as I’ve said, you need not worry.”

“Need not worry, need not worry!” However much the mead was touching Harper, Robin was feeling a touch bolder. “Perhaps I want to worry, Har. You aren’t acting like yourself.”

Harper grinned, visibly biting back a laugh. “You’re acting plenty like yourself.” Robin squinted. “Fussy and overprotective.”

Robin scoffed, almost offended. “Overprotective! Says Sir ‘rest in the cart while I do the work of thirty men!’”

“Thirty men!” Harper laughed properly at that until his breath caught in his throat and pulled him double in a coughing fit. “Thirty, Robin, really?” he croaked as soon as his breath allowed.

“My father would send thirty.”

Harper drank again, calming the cough. “Your father really is overprotective.”

Robin could hardly argue with that. He shifted closer and leaned into Harper’s side. “Honestly, what’s the matter?”

“You got me drunk so I’d admit I don’t feel well,” Harper said, vaguely impressed. “Conniving bastard.” But he leaned back into Robin’s touch.

“Answer me, Harper.” Robin let a smidge of princely authority into his tone. “You aren’t usually so…”

He searched for the word, but Harper gave a stuffy, defeated little sigh and sank deeper into Robin’s side. “Your father will have my head when we reach home.”

Robin scoffed. “Like hell.”

“He will.” Harper sniffed and pressed the handkerchief beneath his nose with some force. “You’ve been miserable on this trip—don’t lie to me; you have been—and it is my job t-to—oh, hell—” He leaned away from Robin and crushed a sneeze into his handkerchief, sharp and rough and furious.

“Bless you. I don’t give a damn about your job.” Maybe Robin oughtn’t to have drank. It made it awfully difficult to shut his mouth. “I only care that my friend is ill and you won’t let him rest.”

“I give a damn.” Harper didn’t snap, but the edge to his tone suggested he might have were Robin anybody else. “I haven’t got the luxury of only being your friend.” But he leaned back into Robin’s shoulder nonetheless.

Robin bit down the first words on his tongue, Your father said something to you. Dragging up that old argument could hardly do good. “I’d be happy to see you rest,” he said instead.

“Hah.” Harper swiped beneath his nose. “Less so to see the cart uncovered, dinner unmade, fire unlit…”

“I could have done any of that myself,” Robin insisted.

“And then what use would I be?” Harper’s tone might have sounded playful to someone else, but Robin heard the subtle frailty in the words.

A drop of rain splashed on Robin’s cheek. He put up a hand to feel for more.

“Right.” Harper sat up and pulled Robin’s hood over his head, smiling. As if Robin is the one needed reassuring. “Go stay dry in the cart. I will join you within a half-hour.”

Robin could have argued. A better friend might have. But Harper was rarely so insistent unless he was right, even if Robin couldn’t see it. “I’ll come looking if you’re late,” he said instead.

Harper laughed. “Nonsense, my lord. We don’t need you catching cold, too.” He stood and offered Robin a hand up.

Robin took it. “Then be with me in a half-hour.” The longer he ran his mouth, the longer Harper would be out in the rain, so he nodded goodbye and headed for the cart.

Inside the cart, he lit his fire-light and left it near the entrance, providing paltry light for Robin but, he hoped, a signal for Harper in case the rain put out the campfire. It wasn’t as if he needed to see much to strip off his cloak and boots and crawl under the blankets Harper had laid out.

The rain picked up quickly, and wind along with it. Robin pulled a pillow over his head, trying to block out the roar of the rain hitting canvas and with it the thought of poor Harper caught outside in this misery.

He had no way to tell the time, but he trusted despite his threat that it really had been less than a half-hour when Harper returned. He heard splashing, heavy footsteps drawing closer, then a creak of the cart as Harper started to step up. A pause, then a wet, wrenching sneeze, half drowned out by the rain hitting canvas but for once not muffled. And then another, ripe with exhausted frustration. Harper cursed, gave his nose a quick, rough blow, and climbed into the cart.

“Bless you.” Robin took the pillow off his head and rolled onto his back. “It sounds miserable out there.” As close to you sound miserable as Harper was likely to accept.

“Hah. S’pose so.” Harper turned out the fire-light and tossed it back to Robin, who fumbled it in the unexpected dark. “Were you frightened without me?”

Robin grumbled. “Oh, terribly. I’m a grown man; I’m not afraid of the rain any longer.”

Harper laughed, still shuffling around the cart to get out of his boots and cloak. “And here I thought you needed me.”

Robin lifted up the blankets to his right—prematurely, he realized when the unexpectedly cold air made him shiver. “All right, then. Get under here and protect me from the wind, Sir Necessary.”

To Robin’s relief, that drew more laughter from Harper, until it broke into a couple coughs. “Of course, my lord,” he said, a bit raspy, and slid under the blankets beside Robin.

He was keeping weight off his right arm, Robin noticed. So his shoulder was acting up. Robin waited for him to settle, then moved himself onto Harper’s good shoulder, pinning him down, and tucked the blanket gently over the other before Harper could protest.

Harper laughed softly and looped his arm around Robin’s waist. “You’re fretting.”

“Will you deny me that?”

“I will deny you nothing, my lord,” Harper said with that note of amusement that always left Robin torn between affection and indignation.

He settled on responding with a haughty sniff and pulling the pillow under Harper’s head. “Then tell me what you would have of me.”

Harper’s answer was as quick as predictable. “Nothing, my lord.”

“Don’t lie to me.” Robin settled his head on Harper’s chest and hooked a leg over Harper’s, drawing him close to share their warmth. Harper’s clothes were damp, and he shivered slightly beneath them. All the more reason to cling to him. “I know you hate to be alone when you’re unwell, but you’re hearing anything more than ‘bless you’ as a slight against your honor. Tell me how to care for you.”

Harper sniffed. “It is not your responsibility to—”

“Why did we come out here alone just to act like your father is listening?” Robin bit his tongue, regretting the words as soon as they passed his lips.

He might not have heard Harper’s breath catch without his ear pressed to his chest, but the sound made him want to shrivel up where he lay. “Oh, hell, Har, I—”

Harper twisted his head away from Robin into a vicious, half-stifled sneeze.

Oh. “Bless you. I’m sorry.”

Harper sniffed hard and brought up his right hand to scrub beneath his nose. “Tha’k you.” He sucked his teeth, absently rubbing a thumb on Robin’s back. When he spoke, it was hardly more than a hoarse whisper, as if asking quietly were less offensive: “Will you ride beside me tomorrow?”

“Of course.” Robin could feel the tension leave Harper. “I ought to have done so from the beginning.”

“You needed space.”

“And you needed company.” Robin shifted, pulling Harper in tighter. He’d stopped shivering. “I wish you’d asked for it sooner.” Harper started to speak, but Robin added, “I know you think you can’t, but I wish you would.”

Harper chuckled softly. “Truly, Robin, you worry too much.”

“Only as you refuse to take proper care of yourself,” Robin protested. “Get some sleep, now.”

“At your pleasure, my lord,” Harper teased, but he relaxed beneath Robin and, soon enough, drifted off to sleep.

#bloop #blep #snz ocs #this is attempt FOUR at this fucking fic because they kept developing in my brain so that the beginning of the fic was ooc #by the time I got to the end #they were SUPPOSED to be one-off characters just for this fic. but now they won’t leave my brain and unfortunately I’m obsessed with them

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thekinkyleopard · 16 days

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The Sneeze Room

A Sven and Elex Rqst SnzFic

FT: Sick Remi

⚠️Content Warning⚠️

Fluff, Sick Fic, Contagion, cursing, bullying

Description: Sven finds a reason to compete against his brother, Draeko. Rightfully so, he tags his boyfriend Elex in, who is extremely apprehensive when he finds out a sick Remi is going to be there…

Author’s Notes: I really wanted to torture Elex in this one and what better way to do that than poke at his germaphobia with a disgusting contagious Remi! :^D I hope you like this one Nonny! Art, Remi, Sven and Draeko all by @aller-geez

Sven came racing into the living room, Elex was putting together some sort of lego project when the cat stumbled upon him, paying no mind to the fact his boyfriend was already busy, he began to buzz. “Babe! Babe! So, I was out at the park, right? And I ran into my insufferable brother, Draeko,” rolling his orange slitted eyes to emphasize his annoyance. “And cause he can’t help but torment me, he and his little friend Levi came to tell me that they’re entering a competition tonight,” Elex was paying little to no attention to the story his boyfriend was prattling on about, simply just trying to make sure he had the right bricks for the right parts.

“Yeah, and?” the badger scoffed at the idea of the leopard and the hybrid being able to accomplish any sort of competition between the two of them.

“It’s 25k and it’s an escape room! I told him I bet half that chunk, me and you could finish before them two,” snickering a bit at the idea but then crossed his arms. “However, they’re bringing Remi as an advantage because they said it was entirely unfair if it was me AND you, seeing as you can escape even a prison cell,”

“Heh, yeah I can,” Elex smirked, still tinkering with the colored blocks as his head grew a size too big.

“Okay, sweet, so you’re in then right?” the other lit up, almost completely ready to start bouncing off the walls he was full of so much adrenaline.

“Wait hold on, you said Remi is going?” Elex suddenly looked up from his project and over at his boyfriend, his face full of skepticism and caution.

“Yeah, why?” The cat suddenly paused, curious to his partner’s reserve.

“I’m not going anywhere near that fleabag,” the badger officially met his boyfriend’s gaze, his own clearly written in distaste now. “He’s been ranting and raving all over Barkbook about how he’s sick again, no, nuh uh, keep that sack of illness the hell away from me,” the germaphobe shuddered, just the thought alone of being next to that mongrel with his open maw expelling hundreds of bacteria at him….he shuddered.

Sven's voice was laced with annoyance, yet tinged with a hint of pleading as he tried to persuade his partner to take on the daunting quest. "Babe, please. We need you to take one for the team," he urged, knowing that their success depended on their joint effort and determination.

“N.O. No. Not doing it, he’s gross, he’s unsanitary, he’s also extremely fucking pigheaded and wont cover his god damn MOUTH, NO!” Elex now sat back, crossing his own arms over his chest, and turning his back to the other. Sven raised a thin brow and cocked his head to the side. It seemed he was going to have to pull out the big guns. Time for operation “Question his manhood.”

“So just like that then? Just gonna let that behemoth be the reason you don’t win this for us? Shit well, I guess I’m dating a pussy instead of a man,” the cat shrugged his shoulders loosely starting to turn on his heels when he could almost physically hear Elex’s last strand of patience, snap in half.

“Excuse me? What the fuck did you just say? That I’m a PUSSY?” the man slowly turned his head to glare daggers in the direction of his audacity filled boyfriend. “A PUSSY?”

“What? It is what it is, you’re scared of a little germy wolf, and that’ll be the reason I never truly out due Draeko, so long as he has that damn wolf,” shaking his head back and forth, clicking his tongue with disappointment. “It’s a shame, you know?” Elex’s mint green eye twitched in response, his fingers pulsating until they closed in to quick, tight fists.

His words were tinged with frustration and a hint of fear, as he vehemently denied being scared. "I'm not afraid…" he insisted, "just…CAUTIOUS... I don't want to risk getting SICK," He emphasized his words through clenched teeth. Despite his efforts to remain calm, the tension in his body was evident as his face flushed with a deep red color. Every muscle in his body seemed to be on high alert, ready to flee at any sign of danger. He was determined to stay level-headed, but the emotions were slowly creeping in.

“No, yeah, right, scared, cautious, pussy, same thing,” Sven clicked his tongue and shrugged yet again, and that was seemingly pissing the badger off even more than his words. How he was so careless and casual about denying his manhood, and his strengths?

“Fine! Fuck! I’ll go! But at the end of the day, if I catch whatever freak virus that asshole has, you’re gonna be the one nursing me back to health, you hear me?” He narrowed his dual colored eyes before aggressively, and less than politely, started packing up his lego project, mumbling to himself with disdain. “Stupid fucking Draeko…always having to trigger Sven into some dumb shit that I get dragged into….why cant that idiot have a….idk..donut eating contest or something? Why is it always so absolutely irritating…” the green haired man was fuming as he went back and forth between cleaning up his mess and keeping what he already had built, safe.

Sven couldn't contain a small chuckle, careful not to let the grumpy badger hear his quiet victory. He was determined to prove himself as smarter, stronger, and more resilient than that damn hybrid, by blowing him out of the water of this competition. With Elex’s innate ability to escape more situations verbally or physically, they had it in the bag.

~LATER THAT NIGHT~

They arrived at the venue, Elex feeling less and less inclined to be there as they parked and started to get out of the vehicle. “Are you sure I have to come? Like…I can’t just stay in the car?”

“No El, you can’t just stay in the car,” the Cheshire rolled his orange eyes impatiently, shutting the door and locking the vehicle behind them with the fob. “Am I really going to have to go into round two of the conversion stage?” the badger sighed deeply at his boyfriend’s response and grumbled back.

“No…please don’t bring my manhood back into this,” sighing with exasperation and an avoidant…distant look in his eyes. As they entered the building, the stench of sweat and stale air filled Elex's nostrils. He wrinkled his nose in disgust, grumbling under his breath about the lack of cleanliness of the venue alone. He followed Sven, who was already strutting towards the entrance, trying to present himself as much more confident than he was.

The two made their way through the sea of random people, avoiding the pungent smells and germs as best they could. They reached the registration desk and handed over their entry forms. "Welcome! You're just in time we start in 5 minutes," the speaker behind the desk said with a grin, handing them a map to their starting location.

Elex could feel the eyes of the other competitors on him, anytime he’d make eye contact with some unsuspecting visitor, he’d lift the left side of his upper lip and scowl. Effectively turning away lingering eyes with his threatening gazes. He then ignored their stares as he and Sven followed the map to their starting point. As they approached, they saw Levi, Draeko and Remi all standing outside a door marked “11” the same number given to them on their map sheet.

“Draeko,” Sven glared at his brother, the two sets of competing eyes glaring down at each other. The first thing Elex noticed however, was Remi, dry heaving and coughing into the crook of his elbow with sunken, swollen and pale glowing green orbs.

“Oh…dear god,” Elex whispered with a terrified expression written across his face. Levi looked up, and noticed the apprehension, and in usual fashion tried to soothe the badger’s worries.

“Hey, El, sorry, I know…but I swear, he’s on the mend! It doesn’t look like it but…I’ve managed to not catch it!” The cat nervously scratched at the back of his neck, voice slightly muffled as he was the only one adorning a mask. The badger narrowed his multi colored gaze.

“Okay well, do you have an extra mask?” crossing his arms over his chest in an impatient, but waiting stance.

“Shit, no sorry just this one…I mean you could have it if you wa-…” the cat embarrassingly shuffling through his pockets and jacket to see if he might have a second but coming up short. He knew he would, but he had to play it off like this wasn’t part of Drae’s plan to keep Elex at his lowest.

“No, no thanks,” shaking his head quickly in response, there was no way in fuck Elex was sharing a mask. YIKES. Especially not with someone he barely even knew. “I’ll just…try to…stay away,” Looking the sickly wolf up and down who could only smirk in response before jolting forward with his hands out to scare the apprehensive man.

“Boo!” Remi chuckled as Elex stepped back significantly to avoid the other’s sudden threatening touch.

“Remi! Knock it off!” Levi nudged the large man with his elbow, trying to hide a snicker of his own. ‘Fake ass bitch,’ the badger thought inwardly catching the leopard’s response. Despite the ongoing fued between Sven and Drae, and Elex at the rest of them, things were seemingly pretty calm at this moment, no insane bragging quite yet just narrowed eyes and stale, uncomfortable vibes.

Sven ignored the bickering three, his focus on the task at hand, scoping out the map and trying to see if he could already spot the first answer but it was really a whole lot of nothing. "Alright El, let's focus on the competition," he spoke without looking up, trying to bring their heads together on this, but Elex couldn't avoid the ill-fated wolf's stern emerald gaze, and the sight of him churned his stomach. He could practically envision the germs seeping from the wolf's every pore, a reminder of the bacteria that could infect him if he didn't keep a reasonable distance. He noticed the way the large man suddenly froze, and hitched…his mouth opening slowly. Elex now stepping back 3 notches when the wolf lurched forward and let out a loud, obnoxious sneeze that sprayed within the few feet radius in front of him.

“Hi”DTSCHIEW!!…SndDff…my bad..” he snarfed loudly, rubbing his wet, red, chuffed nostrils against the sleeve of his button up, Elex almost gagged.

"I think..." Elex began, but hesitated. "I think I made a terrible mistake coming here, Sven, seriously, this guy looks terrible, I want to go home…” he whispered to the side so only his boyfriend could hear his anxious worries.

Sven raised an eyebrow. "We just got here and you already want to tap out? No, don’t make me go into the pussy lecture again..” they both made eye contact now, each one’s gaze stern but neither of them broke.

“Fine,” the badger folded, knowing there really was no telling his boyfriend, no, when he wanted to do something. So instead, he pouted, and tried his best to avoid Remi’s consistent, slightly distant, but cold stare.

“Alright folks! We are getting ready to open the room doors, are you all ready to get going?” one of the hosts announced through a megaphone at the different teams all awaiting their entrances.

Sven, Draeko, and Levi nodded in unison, readying themselves for the challenge ahead. Elex, however, hesitated. He could feel the tension rising in the room, a palpable sense of anticipation that made his stomach flutter. He looked around the room, taking in the different faces of his friends and competitors, each with their own unique qualities and motivations. He swallowed hard and turned his face back to the door. He could do this.

As the host's voice boomed through the speakers, the doors buzzed open, and the group stepped forward. Sven and Draeko pushing and shoving at each other to get through the door first, fighting to take charge. He looked at the map in his hands, studying the intricate layout and trying to envision the path to victory but everything they could see ahead of them was on the paper as well. “Elex check out that right side of the room,” Looking over to make eye contact with the badger who was very apprehensive to move anywhere in that direction seeing as Remi was leaned up against the wall of that side, hanging on for dear life and certainly no help to the challenge itself. Sniffling loudly, his eyes rolled back, he wasn’t even sure why he was there at this point himself. He just did whatever Levi begged of him.

“Fffffuuu…—h’DttTISHh!” Remi sprayed violently in front of himself and Elex groaned loudly, looking back over to Sven who was now back to shoveling and fighting Drae to get a better look under the dressers and furniture. Taking a deep breath in, the germaphobe took a few steps closer to the wolf, that was directly blocking his way.

“Hey can you just…move a little that way?” His voice was neutral, he didn’t want to add too much emotion behind it, because he knew that Remi didn’t do too well with overtly emotional people. Despite that he was physically shaking, his brain swarming with the endless possibilities of illness and death that were haunting him, he remained calm enough to meet the other’s sunken gaze.

“Yeah, no cad do bud, Lebi wands me do keeb you from helbing…maybe, don’d be sugg a baby…SNDDFfF” the wolf tried to tease and chuckle, knowing full well he and Levi were really here to offset the badger. Elex’s brows furrowed and he let out a deep, irritated sigh before he shook his head.

“Fine, dont wanna move? Then I’LL move you my fucking self,” The badger stepped closer, and Remi stood up straighter, crossing his strong arms over his chest and smirking downward before letting in a deep inhale. “Dont….Dont you fucking do it,” the wolf could only grin larger despite the obvious tired look written behind his eyes.

Draeko, Sven and Levi all deeply invested in their searches for clues that they could not even spare a second to notice the ‘man off’ going on behind their backs.

“H-Hah!…” the wolf started, Elex took one step back, he winced but then took a deep breath, prepared himself mentally and shoved at the wolf to move him aside. “Oh-…Hell no,” Remi stumbled loosely to the side, truthfully not suspecting that the badger would grow a pair enough to stand up to him. He reached over, trying to grab the badger by the shirt but he was entirely too fast as he bobbed to the side.

“No! Just mOVE! Dude!” he argued as they did a sort of two step around each other, the badger quickly grabbing a painting off the wall to use as a shield while Remi finally blew his lid unable to contain the sneezes he was using as leverage.

“HNkt’KNXTuhh!! tch’ISSH! iH’tSSH!” the large man sprayed a cloud of salivic mist across the painted frame that was being held a good 6 inches from Elex’s body initially.

“This is my NIGHTMARE! Sveeeeeen!” he finally called out to his boyfriend, who gasped loudly as he turned around, the badger thinking finally he was going to be rescued.

“You found the first clue El! Great fucking work ! “ the spot to which the painting had once hung, was bare, but a single note in the middle of the empty space. The Cheshire snatches the piece of paper and covers his viewage of it. The badger practically turned into the saddest puddle in the world when his boyfriend walked right past him to immerse himself within the escape.

“Hey! Let us see!” Drae reached over to grab at the note the feline snatched it off the wall, but to no avail, completely unable to see what the clue was.

“NO! I dont have to for at least 5 minutes, Elex found it, thats the rules!” the green haired badger looked over at his boyfriend with a raised brow. Did his man just…whine? Like a child? Over rules? He shuddered. Everything about this was not right.

Sven huddled around Elex, both of them curious about the clue he had accidentally found. The cat held the note up, his eyes flicking over the contents. "This is a tough one," he said, shaking his head. "I don't know if I can see anything useful here…” It was just a bunch of lines in a strange pattern. What were they looking at? The badger knew he’d seen this before, somewhere in a codes book, he squinted and scanned it, suddenly feeling a harrowing feeling hover him.

Remi had been stood off to the side, but was becoming curious as he watched Drae and Levi who were desperately trying to peak around the two men. The wolf, still recovering from his sneezing fit, his nose red and raw, slowly approached the group, his open breathing mouth casting over the two as he towered them to read the note. Elex felt the entire world suddenly rattling around him as he felt the man, hosting his hot breath over them. “YO, dude can you, BACK the fuck up?” The badger immediately got defensive, backing a few inches away while the wolf could only snicker again, wetly, the sound of an inhaled and swallowed knot echoed around them. Elex’s lips pulled back in disgust. “GOD, You’re so fucking gross when you’re sick dude,”

“Yeah? Do someding aboud id,” the wolf flexes his chest as he stands firmly in his position, crossing his arms over himself and smirking with a cocky resolve.

"I’m going to-…” Elex begins to wind up his fist and Remi gets ready to respond appropriately, but the two of them are suddenly snapped out of it when the sound of Sven’s irritated voice cuts through them.

“Guys! Knock it off….here Remi, take it…shits useless,” The wolf goes to reach for the note but not before the badger quickly intercepts and snatches it from between them.

“It’s not useless, before Caveboy wonder here walked up to muck up my fuckin’ air …I know what it is…” he stepped away to stand on top of a chair he looked down and pointed at the ground. “There, it’s a super rough, detail-less pattern of the rug…snDff…” he sniffled, unexpectedly, unconsciously, at the end of his grand announcement, something, wasn’t right.

However as proud of the moment it was, immediately Draeko started clawing up the rug to find the next clue. The Cheshire looked over at his boyfriend with a look that almost made the green haired man want to let Remi just eat him. "My bad…” he said sheepishly before avoiding eye contact with his boyfriend who was now just trying to get over to the rug before Drae.

“This damn thing wont pull up!” The hybrid grunted struggling to lift the rug off the floor from any of the four corners, Sven, watching carefully to see what the loophole might be. Elex now climbing down from the chair he shook his head back and forth moving to approach the two before Remi side stepped him and blocked his path.

“Dude, move,” the wolf shook his head. “MOVE,” the duo color eyed man squinted at the miserable wall that was Remington Connors.

“Loog, normally, I lige you, ok, no hard feenings bro,” He paused before shrugging with certainty. “Buuuuuud…whadeber Lebi wands he geds so…" The green haired badger rolled his eyes and crossed his arms.

“Are you fuckin’ kidding me? You can’t just allow me to play the game? Isnt that cheating? Two V One?” shaking his head, he could feel a slight tingle in the back of his throat, unbeknownst to him, the same tickle that was building every second within Remi.

“Yea bud…Lebi lowkey blows ad puddles,” he admitted of his little leopard before he hitched, his mouth falling open and before Elex could even step back, spewed outwardly in a loud, quick, spritzy series of sneezes. “ITSCCCCHH’ah!.. iH’tSSH!.. Hh’IISHH!” each one left him and greeted Elex, who practically went pale, his soul leaving his body as he felt each little droplet invading his skin.

“AAAHHHHHHH!!!” He cried dramatically, loudly, the whole room turned to look at him. “I want OUT! Let me OUT! Oh my god… that was so foul….WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?!” The badger turned to scratch at the walls, tearing paintings down, knocking over objects wrecklessly in a fit of panic and slight rage. “OUT!! I’m DONE! I do NOT want to be in here with him anymore, nOPE!!”

“Elex! Elex! ELEX!” Sven tried to call his panicking partner who was probably only envisioning his skin burning alive from the amount of sickly contact he’d had.

“No! Sven! I quit, this sucks, I don’t wanna fucking do this anymore,” the cat sighed with disappointment and nodded.

“Fine…Fine…you can leave, it’s fine…” but the badger looked up and he could see the heart break written all over the other man’s face.

“No…nevermind…it’s fine…Um…” he walked over, and leaned into his boyfriend’s ear to whisper. “Try pulling at the middle of the rug…” trying to give his partner the assurance that he was still in this. Sven smiled, only pulled up half his face but regardless, it was a smile. The cheshire walked over, plucked at the middle of the rug and a small square of it came up and a little key was hanging from the bottom of it.

“Holy shit!” the teal and orange haired man was actually stunned to see his boyfriend’s street smarts were still keeping them ahead of the game.

“Fucking A…we were so close,” Draeko sighed with slight irritation, Levi patting his friend’s shoulder to comfort him on their second L of the night.

“Okay bud, where doed thad gey eben go? SndFf'…” the wolf interjected, sliding his sleeve across his running, reddened nostrils. Elex grimaced.

"Ugh, okay there can’t be too many keyholes in this room right?" Elex replied, still bothered by the germy, contagious raven haired man, feeling his own immune system losing the battle against him.

"Well, it's a key...to where? Do we have any idea?" Levi asked as he examined the small key hanging from afar as Sven held it up.

"I don't know," the other cat admitted, "but we should probably start looking around…" He gazed about the room and amongst the many scattered objects on the ground, Sven having to manually turn and check, taking in the chaos caused by Elex's fit.

"Alright...let's move on, then," Draeko agreed, trying to control his frustration.

As they began searching the room for more clues, it didnt take long before Remi was back at it with following the badger around, hovering his every movement. “Look dude, if you’re gonna be on my dick, fine, but at least cover your fucking mouth….I’m already starting to feel light headed” he started to palm at his forehead, testing his temp. “I swear if you get me sick…”

“Heh, probably already are pal,” the wolf stated with another cocky grin plastered across his stupid, red and tear stained face. Levi looks over to see the two of them back at it, bickering over the fact that his boyfriend was pretty disgusting when he was sick. All according to plan. The leopard looked high and low but all three of them were falling short of finding anything that resembled a key hole.

Elex trying to look around the stupid wolf, immediately noticed something off about the wallpaper that was exposed in a spot one of the paintings had been hung up in, but couldn’t get himself to focus with Remi constantly stepping in front of him. “Okay dude seriously! Stop! You’re pissing me off,”

Elex growled, attempting to shove his way past the wolf, but Remi simply laughed and stepped back further, crossing his arms as he sneered. Elex took a deep breath, trying to calm himself and focus on the task at hand.

Sven, noticing Remi's irritating behavior, quickly stepped between them. "Look, this is straight up blocking, which is cheating, stop," he said, placating him with a stern glance. Remi snickered putting his hands up defensively now.

“My bad, my bad…snDddFf..” stepping to the side he snarfles loudly, his glowing gaze never leaving Elex as the badger cautiously walked past him now.

“Jesus…” Elex shook and then finally stepped close to the wall he had been trying to get a better look at. There was an obvious bump, like the wallpaper had been poorly placed over it. “This is weird…” he ran his flattened palm over it and then began to slowly peel the paper away. Levi stood up, taking notice now and watching along side Sven, Draeko deeply invested in the search still, he hadn’t even noticed the rest of them found a hint.

The badger carefully peeled away the wallpaper, revealing a hidden door behind it. "Babe, I think I found something," he said, excitement creeping into his silently whispering voice trying not to draw too much attention despite the fact Remi and Levi were watching. Well Remi actually had stopped watching to check his phone, he was more than bored being there.

Elex, Sven, and Levi quickly gathered around, staring at the door in disbelief. It was small, but they could all easily squeeze through and nondescript, blending seamlessly into the wall. "Well, let's see where this leads," Sven said unoptimistically, inserting the key into the lock. It clicked as he turned it. The door creaked open, revealing a dimly lit hallway with a faint flickering light at the end. "Well I mean…" the badger said, crawling inside the medium sized entrance that wound him up into a tall but cramped hall. There were large body sized mirrors that followed down. Elex took a deep breath but felt his anxiety creep in when he realized they would all be stuffed in this hall together with Remi.

As they ventured deeper into the mysterious corridor, Remi's lingering coughs began to echo through the narrow space, causing Levi to place a hand over his mask to double shield him from his boyfriend’s germs. Draeko and Sven shared a worried glance themselves but it was quickly melted and masked into that of competition again.

The hall seemed to never end, and the flickering light grew dimmer with each step. The group was getting increasingly claustrophobic, and the smell of Remi's sickness filled the air. Elex’s head felt hot, his throat feeling tighter than it had been and he was starting to sweat at each side of his temples. This wasn’t good. He needed to get through this puzzle, and lock himself in his room away from Sven if he could. “H’H…Hih…HHH…” they heard it from behind them as they squeezed through the hall.

“Please no…” the badger whimpered but not before long the horrendous sound of germs being displaced around them, they echoed in their ear drums and the badger could see the mess of salivic clouds misting painted reflections in the mirrored walls.

“iit”shHIEW! ihh-ih’TSSHHH!!” The other three men shuddered in disgust, covering their mouths and noses as Remi continued to hack and sputter. "We need to get out of here," El said, his voice cracking with panic.

Sven nodded, his face pale as he took a deep breath. "Quick, let's hurry…we’re getting closer to the light we just gotta keep going…” the cheshire managed to motivate the weary crew that continued to push through, but to their dismay, the light was nothing more than a mirror at the very end of the hall reflecting off the light above it. “So what it’s just a long hall of mirrors?” he asked with confusion.

“I guess so…SNdDf…” Elex sniffled, this time realizing it, and quickly snapping his hand over his face to hide it from the cat. “mMmhh…” he hummed as if he was deep in thought. Sven noticed the peculiar behavior but decided to pay more attention to this, apparent puzzle they were locked into.

“Okay, so maybe…one of these mirrors are the door?” Draeko and Levi looked at each other and immediately started peeling mirrors off the walls to check behind them. Quickly, Sven followed suit. “Come on babe! “ El was starting to feel worse for wear as he tried his best to keep it all under wraps, and at bay. It was seriously insane how fast Remi’s super germs spread through one’s immune system and just disables it.

As the group frantically searched through the hall of mirrors, Remi continued to sneeze and cough relentlessly, his horrible and contagious sounds “Hh’IISHH! -hd’ISCHhh!” echoing through the cramped space. Elex could feel himself growing weaker with each passing moment. Disgusting, defeated and downright disappointed. He took a deep breath and forced himself to focus, his eyes scanning the crowded reflections in search of a clue.

Suddenly, he spotted a slight distortion in one of the mirror surfaces. He pointed it out to his boyfriend silently by walking up to him and nudging the cheshire. They both approached the mirror quietly and they hesitantly began to pull, revealing a hidden door behind it. Sven immediately inserted the key into the lock and turned it, the door creaking open to reveal, the very large warehouse they had started in.

They reached the end. “Congratulations!” Sven threw a fist in the air and snickered throwing his index finger at his hybrid brother.

“In your face! We finished first!”

“Oh, actually, you guys are 4th place…but you made it out and thats always a reason to celebrate!” the crew cheered for them and both Sven and Draeko’s faces fell with defeat and disappointment. Elex shook his head and slapped a hand over his forehead.

“We were in competition with EVERYONE in the ware house??”

“Y-yes, that was explained in the sign up and rules section,” the man seemed confused as he looked at the frustrated green haired male. The badger could only shake his head back and forth.

Elex couldn't believe their luck - or lack thereof. Fourth place in a warehouse full of competitors was not the outcome they had hoped for. Deflated, he turned to the group of people he’d come with, who were also wearing expressions of disappointment. So he was basically going to spend the next few days in bed, deathly ill without 25k to smooth it over.

Sven let out a frustrated sigh and Draeko kicked at the ground, mumbling under his breath. "Well, at least we made it out," Levi said optimistically, trying to lift their spirits.

Drae nodded, forcing a small smile. "Yeah, you're right, We did make it out in the end." He glanced over at Remi, who was still coughing and sneezing uncontrollably. "But I think it was probably a mistake bringing Remi…I have a bad feeling we’re all gonna be worse for wear tomorrow," he said, concern evident in his voice.

Remi waved him off weakly. "I'b fide, you guys will be fide too, id’s judt a liddle cold," he rasped trying to clear his throat after the fact.

“Yeah well…this was a bust,” the badger grumbled, his fever starting to burn hotter, his body weaker by the minute as he tried his best to stay focused on getting back home and maybe locking himself up in the shower.

Remi, on the other hand, wasn't doing much better as he continued to sneeze and cough, his entire body wracked with chills and a throbbing headache, the cold he had caught threatening to take him down. “Huh’GDTS’ue! hdt’ishhhh!” the sound of his fit causing Elex to jump out of his skin.

“Alright guys, I’m gonna get him home and in bed….this was fun!” The leopard took his mate by the arm and began to lead him to the exit of the warehouse leaving the three left to stand in awkward silence. Sven avoiding Drae, Drae avoiding Sven, And Elex just desperately trying to swallow his symptoms of illness. He was sweating at a much more profuse rate now.

"Let's get out of here," Sven finally spoke, his voice barely above a whisper. Elex nodded, staying quiet knowing that is boyfriend was probably feeling extremely defeated after all that effort they just put into trying to win. Draeko didn’t say a word to either of them, simply dialed up his phone and called his demon for a ride. Elex definitely wanted to make sure he was gone before that asshole showed up.

They made their way out of the warehouse, the door creaking behind them as they emerged into the cold night air. The three stood in silence for a moment, each lost in their own thoughts. Elex clutched his chest, feeling the weight of Remi's germs bearing down on him with each crushing inhale.

Sven shook his head, a look of disappointment spreading across his face. "We should've never come here," he muttered to himself. "We should've known better than to trust that idiot to have given us all the information ahead of time,"

Draeko sighed, glancing over at his brother, shaking his head. “You know, Sven, I was almost actually starting to just enjoy spending time with you by the end of this…but you’re just so stuck on the past, it’s really a shame,” the hybrid furrowed his brows before ditching the two with their own thoughts. The badger dare not speak, knowing 7 was already feeling fragile enough.

As they walked away from the warehouse, the frosty air seemed to penetrate Elex's every pore, making him shiver involuntarily. His fever was raging now, and he could feel the cold settling deep within his bones, but he dare not pay it any mind as they made the trek to the car.

"I can't believe we actually went through with this and lost," The words escaped Sven's lips in a low, grumbling tone, barely above a whisper. His body posture slumped as he dragged his feet closer to the vehicle now.

Draeko's eyes clouded over, his thoughts drifting to the harsh words he'd spoken earlier. "Yeah, if they hadn’t been so focused on cheating we might have had a chance," he said after a moment, his voice low and tinged with annoyance.

For a moment, they fell into silence, each lost in their own thoughts about the night's events. Elex could feel his strength ebbing away, his body screaming out in protest as he struggled to keep his footing.

"Let's just go home," Sven said pressing the fob twice to unlock the car, they both slid inside, silently, they started the drive back home.

“Can I play some music?” Elex asked nervously, truthfully he couldnt stand the silence and he needed to drown out the possible noises of him struggling for his life on their way back.

Sven sighed heavily, glancing over at his boyfriend, who gave him a flushed, but innocent smile. He pressed a button on the stereo, and the familiar strains of their favorite band filled the car. For a moment, they let out a sigh of relief, lost in the music. But the awkwardness that haunted them was deafening, and Elex knew he couldn’t hold back his overbearing symptoms any longer. As the music played, and the cat white knuckled the wheel as they drove without a peep, the badger slunk in his seat and allowed his face to fall from the mask a bit. He felt like shit.

His head was on fire, his body felt cold, he was shivering and sweating at the same time, he very steathily, pulled a tissue from the side of the door. He then crumpled it into his sleeve and brought his hand up with the tissue hidden behind his sleeve, he sniffled gently into it. Softly rubbing, trying to relieve himself of the itch. Sven was lost in his own universe, unaware of his boyfriend’s suffering.

Meanwhile, the misery was slowly but surely getting the best of him, and yet he couldn't bear to disturb Sven, he knew that he would only feel worse on top of losing. He couldn’t also deal with the fact he’d forced his boyfriend into illness. The music filled the car with a melancholic melody that somehow seemed to comfort them in that moment.

As they drove through the empty streets, Elex's fever raged on, the cold that had settled deep within his system now spreading to his very core. The heat of the car seemed to only magnify the discomfort, and the pain in his head was becoming almost unbearable. He wriggled in his seat, desperately wanting to peel his shirt off or at the least blast the AC. He took a deep breath in before his nostrils flared, twitched and tickled. Immediately he shut his mouth, trying to hide any indications that he might just sneeze, his nostrils wet with anticipation.

With every mile that passed, Elex grew weaker, and the virus that threatened to consume him grew stronger. He clutched his chest, trying to hold himself together, his body wracked with chills that didn't seem to want to let up.

Fifteen minutes that felt like several days, finally they arrived home. The ill feeling badger pictured himself sprinting inside and locking himself in the bathroom and dying in the shower for a couple of hours until he felt well enough to emerge. Yet, he was unable to even move, it was starting to worry Sven as he saw Elex just laying there with his eyes closed, head slumped back and mouth gaping open. “Babe? You good? It’s time to go in….” asking cautiously.

Believe it or not, the green haired man was conscious he was just incredibly weakened by this point and his legs felt like jelly. He was also beyond drained from trying to pretend like he wasn’t knocking on death’s door. “Y-yeah..gimme a sec…I’ll meet you in there…just tired…” he cleared his throat trying to sound more convincing before he noticed his boyfriend nod, turn and give him his space.

“Holy fuck…finally..SNDFfdF..” he sniffled loudly, it filled the car with the wet sound as he brought a tissue to his persistently itching nose. He rubbed it so hard there was a rhythmic clicking sound that rang in his ears. “H-H…Hh’…” he struggled against the tissue. “H’uSSHHhhiew! h’USHhh’iew!” he suddenly burst from within, his tickling nostrils getting the better of him as he sprayed into the already pretty dampened mulch. “Gross…” he muttered weakly. It felt good at least to get that off his chest…it might have been just what he needed to get in the house, past Sven and into the bathroom.

He mustered up the last of his strength and pushed himself out of the car, stumbling slightly as he made his way towards the house. Each step felt like a monumental effort, but the thought of finally being able to rest in the warmth of their home drove him forward. The badger's pallor was ashen, his eyes heavy with fatigue. Without a word, he walked into the house, quickly, as much as he could, past his boyfriend that spun around to try and catch up, into the bathroom, locking the door shut and sliding down the door in agony. “Fuuuuuu…” he groaned stubbornly, he made it, but at what cost. His head was now spinning. “H-H…Ih…” he struggled against the quickly building sensations inside him.

“Els? You good in there?” He already knew the truth, it was obvious as night and day. Elex only ever rushed to the bathroom like this when he was ill, and trying to actively hide that from him. Idiot. Why did he ALWAYS go to the bathroom? He knocked gently. “Babe?”

“N-No I’m okay just go-gotta piss…” he lied through his teeth before the inevitable came barreling out through his mouth and into the quickly rising palms of his hands. “Heh’EhDTSHiEw! etUSCHOO!” it was like he had entered his own personal hell, he groaned weakly his hands wet of his sickness, and his nose starting to leak down his darkened skin.

Sven's heart clenched with worry as he heard his boyfriend struggle on the other side of the door. He knew Elex too well to believe the feeble excuse he had just given, and the sound of his sneezes only confirmed his suspicions. Without another word, Sven retrieved a spare key from its hiding place and swiftly unlocked the bathroom door. “h’UHtTSCHhiew! hh’ieXSSHH!” more distressing sounds of illness and ache echoed from behind the door, the green haired man falling further into his sickly resolve.

What Sven found inside once he ripped the door open, tore at his heart. Elex was hunched over in the corner closest to the door, pale and shivering, his face contorted in discomfort. The tissues in his hands were already soaked through, and his eyes reflected a mixture of pain and embarrassment.

Sven knelt beside him, placing a comforting hand on his back. "Elex, why didn't you tell me you were feeling this bad?" he asked softly, concern lacing his voice.

“I….didn’t want you to feel worse…after the loss,” he grumbled, avoiding eye contact like a small child that’d been caught in the cookie jar. The sick badger then managed a weak shrug in response, a fresh wave of static tingling over him. He felt utterly defeated, both by his illness and by his inability to hide it. Stupid. The cat's chest ached at the sight of Elex trying to bear the burden of his sickness alone, all for the sake of sparing him more grief. He gently took some tissues off the roll of paper and began to wipe at his hands and then handed him a warm washcloth, using it to dab away the sweat that dotted his feverish brow.

"You’re a pain in my ass you know that?" Sven chuckled jokingly, a mix of fondness and exasperation in his tone. "You don't have to go through this alone. We're a team, remember? I'm here for you, no matter what,” the man emphasized as he leaned closer to kiss the man on his clammy forehead.

Elex finally met Sven's gaze, seeing the genuine concern and love behind those serious orange orbs. A feeling of relief washed over him as he realized he didn't have to suffer in silence. With a shaky sigh, he leaned into Sven's touch, letting himself be comforted by the warmth of his presence.

As the Cheshire helped Elex to his feet and guided him to their bedroom, the badger felt an instant sense of relief, guilt and fondness wash over him. He couldn’t believe what a fuckin dick he was to this man sometimes, truly he didnt deserve him. "I can sleep on the couch if you prefer babe…I dont want you to have to be put ou-..H-Hh’uhSSCHHIHHww!” out shooting another one but the delinquent was quick enough to aim into the crook of his elbow.

Come on you, just get into bed don’t worry about me,” he shook his head at his ailing mate, all he could really think about was getting him rest. Elex sniffled loudly trying to wobble his way to their shared bed and slide inside but was stopped by the cheshire who let out a harmless chuckle. “Babe, you’re still wearing your clothes,”

“Oh…righd…sNdnfF..” he grumbled and groaned the whole way through trying to undress himself before 7 had to step in.

“I’ll do it babe, it’s fine,” taking over as he helped Elex out of his clothes and into a fresh pair of pajamas. The badger let out a soft sigh of relief as he finally settled under the warm covers, feeling a sense of comfort wash over him. Sven tucked him in gently, making sure he was comfortable before climbing into bed beside him.

As Elex lay there, his body still trembling with fever, he couldn't help but feel grateful for Sven's unwavering support. Despite his stubbornness and attempts to push him away, Sven had never wavered in his care and love for him in the last decade of being together. Though his reflections were short lived when he felt a down pour of trickling madness. His nose was on fire, his throat was demanding and it was going to come out again. That same, messy, loud, affliction. “Hh’UmfsHhhiew! h’UsHh’iew!” it was almost like he couldn’t catch a break but the cat handed him a tissue and he smiled weakly. "I love you…" Elex mumbled hoarsely, his voice barely above a whisper.

Sven's response was immediate, his hand reaching out to caress Elex's cheek tenderly after the man had taken the soft material. "I love you too, you stubborn fuck," he replied with a soft chuckle. The green and brown eyed man squinting with distrust now but still cracking a side smile.

“You’re not wro..h-.UShh’iew!” he released into the pit under his blanket, more so into the fabric than not, or else he put himself at the risk of getting his chest wet with sick. He shuddered and Sven leaned in closer to the other, wrapping his arms tightly around the slightly taller green haired grump.

“Bless you, my little earth pig,” immediately Elex rolled his eyes into the back of his skull.

“Stooooobbb I hade when you call me dhad,” Sven couldn't help but chuckle at Elex's grumpy response, finding solace in the fact that even when he was feeling at his worst, his partner still had enough spirit to protest endearingly.

"Alright, alright, no 'earth pig' then," he conceded with a smile, pressing a gentle kiss to Elex's forehead. The badger let out a tired huff of contentment at the affectionate gesture, his eyes fluttering shut as he leaned into Sven's embrace.

In the comfort of their shared bed, surrounded by warmth and love, Elex finally allowed himself to relax. The weight of his illness seemed a little lighter with Sven by his side, offering unwavering support and care. As sleep began to tug at his consciousness, he whispered softly, "Thank you for taking care of me."

Sven held him closer, feeling a surge of tenderness for the stubborn badger who had captured his heart so completely. "Always,” and the two found themselves closing their eyes, and drifting to sleep.

The End

Author’s Notes: I had so much fun with the dialogue in this!!!!! But I really truly hate myself for choosing escape room because A: I’ve never done one B: I put forth no energy to research them either and just hit a road block for two weeks instead 😭🥲 Which is another reason there’s no smut cause I just really wanted to be done 😂 I hope this was at least enjoyable!!! I’ll do better with the next Svelex rqst I promise 😂

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