Point of Presence
Chapter 5: Aid
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It was raining even harder as I pulled into the driveway, parking the car. I got out, going over to the passenger side, and opening the door. Touya was quiet, his eyes closed tightly. Gods, he looked miserable. I changed into Yue, mainly for the superior strength I had in that form, lifting Touya in my arms. An odd expression crossed his face then, and he looked up at me with the clearest eyes I'd seen from him that day.
"Nani... " He was clearly surprised at this apparent sudden improvement. "What did you do?" I shrugged, cradling him close and using my wings to keep him dry as I brought him inside his home. After nudging the door closed with my foot, I dropped our book bags inside the door and carried him upstairs, headed for his room. I'm sure an irked expression crossed my face as I saw that his door was closed. Leave it to Touya. I should've expected that, though. He was rather particular about his privacy.
I opened the door with a stray tendril of magic, and Touya shuddered. Another puzzled glance down at him revealed that a strangely peaceful look had set upon him. I blinked slowly, taking him in his room. The covers on his bed were already neatly folded down. Points for laziness. I set him down, and he just laid there for a moment, breathing deeply. He looked up at me sheepishly.
"Can you give me a hand with this?" 'This' ended up being his clothes. The blush that Yuki surely would've worn was hidden effectively by my currently impassive face. I took a step closer to his bedside, helping Touya shed his blazer, tie, and button-down shirt. His shoes and socks went next. I was silently thankful that he was able to get his slacks off by himself, because the way things were going, I wasn't completely sure I'd have been able to keep myself from indulging in an extra caress. I turned away as he pulled the plain white T-shirt out from the waistband and began to undo the button, giving him some semblance of privacy. We'd changed together countless times before, and in doing so, seen each other in nothing more than boxers, but this felt like an entirely different situation.
I heard cloth making its way into the laundry basket across the room, and covers shifting. When I turned around again, I saw that Touya was mostly situated, lying on his side, the comforter enveloping him near completely. He'd gathered the blanket around himself, pressing his lips and nose into the coil of fabric that he was latched onto. He looked over at me, as if he was trying to puzzle some aspect of me out. I nearly laughed. If that's what he was trying to do, he'd give himself a migraine. Just like I had.
I glanced around the room, and something I'd never noticed before caught my attention. There was a small plush rabbit with floppy pink ears sitting merrily on top of his bookcase. I took a few steps closer to it, wondering why it's stitched pink nose and bright amber eyes struck me as familiar. I placed it a moment later. Last year, he'd won one at the festival and given it to Sakura. This was the one that I won at the archery game, and given him, mostly to tease him about his sister complex. I hadn't known that he'd even kept it. I reached up, setting it in my palm, and looking at it for a second. Then I looked at Touya. Was that a blush I saw? Or was it just part of Touya's being sick?
I took it with me when I pulled a chair up next to the bed, sitting down on it, ever mindful of my wings and tail of hair. I nestled the toy up next to Touya's face. He glared at me, daring me to make a comment. When I just smiled slyly, he rolled his eyes, looking at me somewhat warily.
"You don't have to stay here," he said. If he was as weak as he sounded right then, I wasn't about to leave him here alone. "I'm feeling a bit better."
"If you'd like to be alone, I'll go downstairs, but I'm not leaving until at least Sakura or Kero gets here. Knowing you, you'll try something you're not up to and get yourself killed."
"Glad to know you've got so much confidence in me, Yue," he said sourly. "I'm fine, really."
"Lies are more effective if you can say them with your eyes, To-ya." He met my violet gaze briefly, barely nodding in acquiescence before letting his eyes slide closed. He laid there, mostly silent, for almost ten minutes before I heard his breath quiver when he sighed softly. I narrowed my eyes, and watched as a tremor ran through his body. I looked up, watching his face flush before my eyes. He shivered again, curling up. I waited a moment for him to ask for help. When it became apparent that he wasn't going to, I sighed. Your pride will be your downfall, my friend.
Without a word, I slipped my wing under the covers, blanketing Touya's shaking form, chiding him gently with my eyes. He looked surprised, but quickly relaxed into the warmth the embrace of the feathers and flesh beneath. "Arigotou," he said softly, sounding like he was falling asleep.
"I'll stay until Sakura comes home, ne?" I offered. He merely nodded. If he had asked me to stay for the rest of the night, I'd have done it without a second thought. "Maybe get you something to eat later?" He shook his head, almost violently.
"I haven't been able to hold anything more than water down for over a week," he said. I looked at him in disbelief. "I've tried. Please, believe me, I've tried." His voice was desperate suddenly. "Don't tell Sakura," he asked. "I don't want her worrying about me--"
"Like you worry about her?" I asked, although not in jest. I knew how much he did worry, how much of an effort he put into protecting her. Even more so, now that he didn't have his powers. "I promise, To-ya. Try to get some rest now." I'd be the one worrying for the following hours, remembering the memories that had come with the transfer of his power.