Loid coming back from a job early and remembering that Anya isn’t home from school yet. Yor had mentioned she would be home late so Loid goes ahead and thinks what the heck, I’ll pick her up from school.
So he stands outside the school waiting and when the bell rings and the children come rushing out, he waits patiently for his daughter to come running up to him.
Except... she doesn’t.
A little concerned, he stops one of the kids that he’s seen Anya with before and asks if they’ve seen her recently. They say something about her heading some direction away from the kids and then keeps walking to their own parents.
Loid, now a little more than worried, makes his way through the school and stops a few more older students wondering if they’ve seen Anya, but they haven’t.
He flicks through the halls of the school and comes across his daughter hiding under a side table, tears in her eyes and her hands over her ears. Blood dripping from her nose and pale looking.
“Anya, what are you doing here?”
“Anya was trying to be brave, but the people were really loud.”
Loid slips himself under the table for a moment, comforting Anya and letting her calm down next to him, then when she has, he offers to come out from under the furniture with her.
As the two stand up, and Loid lifts his daughter into his arms, he remembers all the times he was afraid as a child. Crying and hiding in rubble and away from enemies.
“You’re very brave Anya. Braver than I ever was.”
Anya falls asleep in his arms as he carries her back home and puts her to bed comfortably. He knows that he’ll never be able to replace her real parents, but he’s realised he wants to be there just as much, if not more for her. He wants to be her new protector.
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Macaroni Soup
Dedicated to @shiro-s2e2-erukinzu and @tare-chan because they're so adorbs
"See y'all tomorrow!"
"Bye!"
I bid my coworkers goodbye before taking the turn at the corner of the street. I had a half-day at city hall today. My next assasin gig won't be given until the weekend so luckily I can rest for the rest of the day!
Or maybe I should practice cooking or sewing? I haven't thoroughly read the homemaking magazine I bought last week. I have to work hard. I need to be more useful or else Loid will end up collapsing from taking care most of the chores...
"Oh! You're already back, Mrs. Forger!" The old lady neighbor greeted me as I ascended the stairs.
"Yes. The city hall was only open half-day for today. But everything will be back on regular schedule tomorrow."
"Is that so? Then have rest and relax yourself, dear."
"Thank you, I will."
I'm becoming more and more comfortable talking to our neighbors. I feel like I'm improving. I feel like I'm getting good at acting normal!
I can't erase the smile that's on my face even when I'm already at the door. Now I need to work hard and learn more about homemaking. Loid will be delighted once I get better!
"Okay! I should try harder! Let's practice sewi-"
I stepped on something as I walked through. Down on the floor I saw Loid lying.
"Loid!"
I kneeled beside him and shook him.
"Loid what are you doing here? What happened to you?"
He's hot. He has fever!
It's my fault... I couldn't do other chores and Loid kept on doing them for me.
I immediately hoisted him up. He gained consciousness and looked at me in confusion.
"Yor? Why are you..." He spoke hoarsely.
"You have a fever! Let's get you over to your room so you can rest!"
"No, Yor. I can..."
I put his arm over my shoulder and grabbed him by the waist. I assisted him as he walked but instead of heading to his room, he pointed to the couch instead.
"You want to rest here?"
He nodded weakly in response.
I helped him sit down then gave him a glass of water. I sat beside him and waited for him to finish drinking. I took the glass away and placed it on the table. He's pale and could barely open his eyes.
"How about work?" He asked, finally sounding better after drinking water.
"Today's a half-day. Stay right there. I'll get you a pillow and blanket."
I got up to fetch them but was stopped by Loid.
"You don't have to-"
"I'm sorry, Loid. If only I knew how to sew and iron clothes... I should've went to the supermarket and returned back Anya's books to the library instead of leaving them to you. No wonder you ended up sick because you're tired of doing everything by yourself."
"N-No, Yor! I di-"
"I'll get your pillow and blanket."
Then his hand let go of mine. I only realized that he grabbed my hand after letting go.
I brought back a pillow and blanket with me. To my surprise, he's trying to get up. I dropped the pillow and blanket and immediately rushed to him.
"No, Loid! You're sick! You and Yuri... Why are you both stubborn when you're sick? Remember, what a sick person only needs to do is to get well!"
"I have... to go..."
This is no time for Loid to think about work? Is his fever so bad that he became delirious?! Should I knock him unconscious by force?!
No no, Yor! You can't do that to a sick person! It won't do anything goo-
"Hm..."
Loid's sudden weight on me cut off my thoughts. His head landed on my shoulder and he struggled to make himself upright again. Instead of being able to do so, he ended up snuggling his head to my neck.
"H-Huh?!"
"Hm..."
Then I felt his breath tickle me. It was hot.
"Eeek!"
In shock, I pushed him away and causing him to drop and bump the edge of the couch. I earned a wince from him.
"Loid! I-I'm sorry! Did it hurt?!"
What did I do? I must have put too much force! Yor! You should be taking care of him instead of hurting him!
I kneeled to check on him. He passed out but his breathing is not too heavy.
"I'm so sorry, Loid." I muttered as I put up his legs on the other end of the couch.
I put the pillow under his head and covered him with the blanket.
What should I do?! What should I do?
"Remember what you heard from Sharon the other day, Yor! Remember what to do just like whenever Yuri gets sick! You can do this."
Should I make honeyed water? But there are no beehives around! How about the herbs? Where should I get them? No-no, no! Don't be silly! Honey can be bought from the supermarket.
"Bond! Can you watch ove-"
I fell silent upon remembering that Franky took Bond out this morning and he said that they might take a longer walk than usual. Anya is still at school so no one is around.
I have no choice but to leave Loid for a moment.
I covered Loid with blanket and put a cold towel on his forehead.
Then I made a quick run to the supermarket. I bought honey and fruits and different kinds of medicine. I dashed back as soon as I have paid. When I went back, Loid is still sound asleep.
I knelt down and took his hand.
He must be very tired. He collapsed and it's my fault for being so incapable...
I held his hand with both of my hands. Maybe if I hold it long enough, I can take away his fever.
I thought I can finally be at ease but I suddenly thought that he might not have eaten anything since he didn't leave the house at all.
It's already past noon! Loid might be starving now! I probably should cook porridge. Come to think of it, Loid cooked something like that before and it was really delicious. But how do I make it?! I don't know how to cook it. I'll have to ask for Camilla's help...
I called Camilla to ask for her help over the phone. Then I asked her if she can teach me how to cook rice porridge. I got an earful at first but I'm always thankful that she's helping me in the end. She said she's not familiar with the kind of porridge I'm talking about so she asked me what I have and gave me a recipe that will let me make something easy. I wrote down her instructions and thanked her again.
I started making Camilla's chicken macaroni soup right away. I did my best to follow her instructions correctly. I diced the carrots just as big as my pinky and boiled the pasta shells on exact time. But despite my efforts, i still managed to deform most of the pasta and shred the chicken into very thin strands. I did not put too much salt because I was told that it's easier for sick people to eat bland foods.
"Phew!"
I carefully poured some into a bowl.
Just in time, Loid woke up. He weakly sit himself up and looked around. When his eyes met mine, I was suddenly reminded of what happened.
Does he know what he did just a while ago?
I held my breath for a moment before breaking off the silence.
"How are you feeling, Loid?" I asked, taking the towel from hIm.
"I... My head hurts... Were you cooking?"
"Yes. I'm making macaroni soup if that's fine with you."
"I'm sorry, Yor. I've troubled you. Don't you have work? I'll be fine here. You should head back to work." He said.
"We have a half day, remember? I told you earlier."
"Sorry... My mind is hazy..."
"How about resting in your room instead?"
He glanced towards his room then turned to me. His eyes reflected something I couldn't fathom.
"No. I... feel better in this open space than in my confined room."
"If you insist..."
I brought over the soup to the low table and sat on the other chair.
"You're probably hungry. Here's the macaroni soup. I asked for my coworker's help over the phone and she taught me this recipe. I'm still bad at cooking but I did my best to follow her instructions."
He stared at the bowl then glanced at me.
"Thanks, Yor. I appreciate it." He said with a soft smile.
That smile of his gave a tug to my chest and warmed me up inside. I found myself smiling back.
"I've already eaten lunch with my coworkers so don't mind me. Do you think you can eat on your own? Or should I feed you?"
Loid suddenly turned to me with a surprised look. It took me a moment to realize what I just said.
"N-Never mind! L-Let me get you a spoon!"
I waited for him to taste it.
"H-How was it? I didn't put too much salt so it must be too bland to your taste..."
"I can't really taste much right now but it's appetizing. It's easy to eat and comforting."
"Really?!
"Yes." He replied.
"I'm relieved to hear that..."
Loid scooped up some more. I'm glad that I was able to cook another decent dish aside from stew.
"I'm very sorry, Loid. You got sick because you kept doing most of the chores. If only I was good with other things..."
"You don't have to apologize, Yor. It's not your fault that I caught a cold. Remember when it rained last time? I was drenched when I came home from work and now I caught the cold."
"But..."
Wait, "last time"? When? Did it really rain?
I was about to ask about it but Loid spoke again.
"By the way, you used milk? I can faintly taste it."
"H-Huh? Oh! I did!" I said.
"And there's carrots. Anya doesn't like carrots but I think she'll like this nonetheless."
"D-Do you think so?" I asked.
He stopped eating and faced me.
"Of course. Have more confidence, Yor. There's no need for you to force yourself. You're already doing you're best as it is so you'll definitely improve soon. Not only in cooking but also with other things. I would like it if you'd stay comfortable here as part of the Forger Family without being hard on yourself."
His words warmed my heart. I can't help but smile.
"Okay... Ah! Let me get you water."
Then Loid held out the bowl.
"Is there still more? I want to ask for another serving. I guess I need to eat more so I can get well right away." He said with a smile.
"Of course!"
I willingly did as he requested and gave him seconds.
"Yor."
"Yes?"
"Thanks for everything and..."
"And?" I let him continue.
"If... Anya or I get sick, can you cook this soup again?"
My eyes grew wide in surprise and I beamed up with a smile.
He's encouraging me this much so it's only right for me to do my best.
"Of course! I'll definitely cook some for you!"
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