Cocoon
a Harry Potter story
by kangaroo
Remus wrinkled his nose and tried to breathe through his mouth, but he kept forgetting and getting a noseful of sickly, clammy air. Waiting rooms everywhere had this horrible, stale cleaning product smell and hospital waiting rooms were the worst, the typical smell of sickness permeated with the hint of depression and desperation that dragged its reluctant occupants to the scratchy, wool covered seats. Usually a trip to St Mungoes would yield at least one comical or humorous ailment to lighten the visit, but today the best was a witch who'd permanently stuck her hat to her head. Every now and then one would shoot a worried look at Sirius, the only person who looked remotely ill at all, pale and shivering despite his coat and scarf and the insipid, sickly heat which hung around all waiting rooms. He was leaning against Remus with his eyes closed, trying to block out the surroundings which only made him feel sicker or, possibly, trying to fall asleep. Unnerved and on edge in this most hateful of rooms, Remus clung to him in return, one arm wrapped tightly around Sirius' shoulders.
The only sound apart from the occasional rustle of 3-month-old magazine pages was Sirius' sniffling and sneezing, with a few wet coughs thrown in for variety. Whilst he was still he laid his head against Remus shoulder, mouth parted and breathing unevenly through it. Remus could feel his hot breaths puffing weakly against his cheek and as Sirius grew limper, he sincerely wished the Healers would hurry up. His wish was granted, as a brisk receptionist called them through.
Examination rooms were somehow so much worse than waiting rooms, sterile and cold, Remus felt himself hold Sirius tighter, more for his own comfort than Sirius'. He hated hospitals with a passion. Hospitals to werewolf meant the smell of illness, the stench of death, they meant cruelty and prejudice, they meant being put down. He let go reluctantly, feeling suddenly incredibly alone and handed Sirius over to the Healer, who introduced himself as Geoff, to examine. He wrapped his arms around himself, hugging Sirius' clothes tightly. Sirius shivered, even in the warm air of the room, as the cold steel of a stethoscope was pressed against his back, and then his chest.
"Ok, Sirius. Breathe in..and out...again." Geoff said as he listened to Sirius' chest. "Cough."
Sirius did so, but aggravated his throat and lungs whilst doing so and flushed with embarrassment as he had a small coughing fit against Remus' chest who'd taken hold of him. Healer Geoff smiled as Remus wrapped the warm coat around Sirius' shoulders as soon as the stethoscope was removed and stood so close to Sirius and the cold examination table that it cut into his hip.
"Finished?" asked the healer as Sirius finished coughing and wiped his mouth with a handkerchief still clutched in his hand. "Can you go for a few minutes without coughing or sneezing?"
"I thidk so." Sirius said, sounding very uncertain.
"Lets give it a try. I'm going to take your temperature, but if you need to cough then go ahead." He took out a slim tube and asked Sirius to open his mouth. Sirius mutely accepted the thermometer under his tongue and discretely curled into Remus as much as possible without sitting in his lap as the healer felt his lymph nodes with his fingers.
The few minutes it took for the thermometer to record Sirius' temperature seemed to drag on, holding Sirius and rubbing his back, Remus smiled awkwardly at the healer as they waited and carefully answered his questions, `how long had Sirius been feeling ill', `when did the cough start' and so on. Eventually he removed the thermometer and Sirius sighed with relief and sneezed. "ahKSHUMF"
"Well, it seems to be a very nasty bout of flu. Nothing to worry about, you'll be fine in a week or so with plenty of bed rest and fluids. What concerns me is how high your temperature has been. Now, Remus, was it? Have you got a thermometer at home?"
Remus said no and hugged Sirius to him tighter.
"You'll need to get one. You can get them at apothecaries, but make sure you get a medical thermometer not a brewing one. I'm going to give you some medicine for him, which should help with the coughing and the fever, but you'll need to take his temperature at least every hour or so to monitor it until it comes down."
Remus nodded mutely as he was given full instructions on administering medicine and taking temperatures, then was ushered out with a bottle of brown syrup which felt cool in his hand. Sirius was, if possible, shakier than before and spoke in a quiet, hoarse voice as soon as they reached the street outside. "Rebus, cad we blease abbarate? I really dod't feel well..."
"I know sweetie, I'm sorry but no. You'll splinch yourself if you try to apparate in this condition. The Knight Bus won't take long, I promise."
Sirius groaned and shuddered inside his big coat. His heart aching for Sirius, Remus whipped off his own cloak and wrapped it around Sirius before sweeping him up into his arms so he could carry him.
"Oh...Reb...you dod't have to..." said Sirius feebly, but made no effort to get down.
"Yes. I do."
Sirius sniffled in response, then sneezed "KSSHHCHOO! HASHHISHH!" mostly onto Remus' front, but sluggishly passed the hankie under his sore nose then laid his head on Remus' shoulder. "Thadkyou."
"Stick your wand out..."
Sirius did so, and with a bang, the Knight Bus appeared. Remus flicked a coin at the waiting guard and sat down in an squashy armchair with Sirius cradled in his arms like a child. Sirius snuggled into Remus' robes as closed his eyes tightly, trying to block out the sickening lurches of the bus and the guard's leery gaze, instead trying to fill his stuffed nose with the comforting smell of Remus – sweet, chocolatey and somehow warm.
Remus tried to hold Sirius as steady as possible while they bumped and bounced their way home. He could hear Sirius' congested breathing and could smell the menthol scent of his last application of Vicks.
Sirius groaned and clutched Remus as he stood up when the bus arrived. Lightfooted and smooth though Remus' gait was, each footfall caused a painful throb along his neck and head, making him feel sick and he was heartily grateful when he was set down upon their bed.
"Cad't you stay here?" He said as Remus stood and turned to leave the room, feeling the loss of his lover keenly in the large bed alone.
"I'll be five minutes, I promise. I need to get you a thermometer..."
"Ah...ah..KERSHH! GSHNN!ACHUMFF!" Sirius groaned.
"Oh darling..." Remus whispered and sat back down next to Sirius. "Do you want me to get Lily or James to stay with you?"
"Wadt you to stay, blease..." Sirius turned big blue eyes, watering and red with sickness up to Remus.
"Alright...alright, I'll, um, just give Lil a call. Is that ok?"
"'kay..."
Remus tucked a blanket over Sirius, coat and cloak and all, smiling at his sick, needy lover sniffling miserably in their bed.
Remus stumbled out of the fire place at Godric's Hollow severely surprising James who was reading on the sofa.
"Moony! Bloody hell, you frightened the life out of me!"
"Yes, I can have that effect. Just not usually this early in the month."
James laughed and stood up to hug Remus. "Long time no see, old boy. How's things down at your love nest?"
"You saw me at the weekend you prat, and the love nest is more like a snot infected nest of tissues at the moment."
"Padfoot's caught that flu that's going round?"
"Like you wouldn't believe. Poor bloke, we've been to the doctors this morning which was a thoroughly depressing experience."
"What was depressing?" asked another voice. It was Lily, glowing and incandescent, with a squirming Harry dangling and giggling from under her arm.
"Hospitals. Yuk."
Lily came over and went to give Remus a peck on the cheek but he jumped back away from her. "Don't come too close, I'm probably carrying this horrible lurgy Sirius has come down with."
"Oh don't be silly." Said Lily and kissed him anyway.
Remus allowed it but refused to take Harry for a cuddle, much to the child's considerable dismay.
"Sorry Harry. I'm not going to go giving you flus and things at this age, well, at any age...look, I better be getting back. Siri didn't want me to leave him so I only came to ask if one of you could possibly nip out and get me a thermometer?"
"Yes of course, but I'll do you one better than that and lend you ours. Wait there." She plopped Harry down on the floor and disappeared into the kitchen, returning a second later prized thermometer clutched in her hand. "Make sure you shake it before putting it under the tongue." She said.
"Will do...thanks ever so much..." Remus turned to go and step back into the fireplace but Lily stopped him.
"How are you? Are you feeling alright?"
Surprised, Remus nodded mutely. "Yeah...o' course..."
"It's just, you look awfully pale, you don't think you're coming down with it?"
"I'm always this colour, Lil. I can't catch it, werewolf immune system and all that." Remus gave her a reassuring smile.
Lily didn't look convinced, "If your sure." She reached up and felt his head quickly with one hand. "I don't think you feel warm..."
"I'm fine. I'll see you both later."
"Alright. Call when he's less contagious."
"Will do!" Remus called from the fireplace and waved as the family disappeared in a burst of green flames and he landed back in his own fireplace and dashed upstairs, thermometer in hand.
"Wasn't too long was I?"
"Doh," said Sirius stuffily looking even snottier than when Remus had left him.
Reaching into his pocket Remus brandished a handkerchief and held it over Sirius' nose. "Come on, blow."
The sound was wet, gurgling and repeating. Sirius eventually finished and flopped back into his pillow, face red and flushed and unhappy. Remus touched his cheek gently and stroked his fingers over the taut skin. "You're so hot, do you still feel cold?"
"Doh...just like I'b about to die..."
Remus chuckled and laid his hand over Sirius' forehead, then stroked the hair from his eyes. "Well I've got a thermometer." He pulled it out and shook it briskly. "Do you want to give it a try?"
Sirius nodded and sniffled miserably. "Will you cuddle id with be? While you take it?"
Remus smiled, "Yeah...open wide then."
Sirius did so obediently then lay perfectly still, like a caterpillar wrapped in a cocoon of blankets, with the thermometer sticking straight up from his lips. Remus crawled up the bed and stretched out full length beside the Sirius caterpillar and wrapped his arm around him. He almost fell asleep, lying back with Sirius tucked in against him, warm and content and he suspected Sirius almost did as well, so when he finally removed the thermometer it was probably the most accurate reading he'd get throughout the rest of Sirius' illness. As he scrutinised it, Sirius coughed and sniffled in a congested fashion.
"39.6. I better get you into bed properly." He had been about to say `that's too high' or something along thoselines, but abruptly changed his mind – what was the point in making Sirius worry as well as feel sick.
Sirius had kicked his shoes off and Remus went to work trying to unwrap the cocoon and remove the outside clothes without allowing any air into the warm tunnel of bedding Sirius had created. He seemed to have pulled it off, and was finishing tucking the blankets around Sirius when it all went to pot and Sirius sneezed.
"ATSHH! TCHHUUF! CUFFUH!" Sneezing led to coughing, a deep resounding cough which shook the bed. "HAAKaaa....CUFF...HUHKAA."
With a moan, he rolled over and curled up into a ball, while Remus rubbed circles on his back, feeling helpless.
"No..Siri," he said, pulling Sirius back onto his back. "You need to sit up, it'll help with the congestion."
"'kay..." he sat up and shuffled his bum back so he was closer to the headboard. Remus fluffed up the pillows and arranged them in a pyramid against the headboard and eased Sirius back against them. He pulled the top sheet up and smoothed it over Sirius' legs and chest, and then pulled the blankets up over it and folded the top part over.
"Is that okay? Comfy?"
"Sbose..."
Remus was a bit shocked, Sirius almost looked close to tears..."What's the matter?" he said softly, combing his long, thin fingers through Sirius thick, dark hair.
"Wadt to cuddle..."Sirius sniffed.
"Oh sweet...come here..." Remus clambered further up the bed and squeezed himself between Sirius and the pillows so he was leaning against most of them, and Sirius against him with one pillow between them, against Remus leg so it didn't go numb.
"Better?"
"Buch." He did indeed seem much more content, and snuggled his face into Remus' collar bone.
"Do you need anything else? Tissues...more Vicks? Tea? Anything?" Remus said, as he resumed his playing with locks of Sirius' hair.
Sirius didn't respond, he barely moved. His eyes were almost shut and his mouth-breathing was smooth and even. Remus was a fuzzy blur to him now, and he could feel the numbness of sleep reach for him. "Thadkyou."
"For what?" Were the last soft words he heard before he went, and then he was gone, into sleep and it's sweet relief.
Author's Notes: I have more waiting in the wings if so desired. xx
Feedback: *begs for it*. Again, I posted this one a bit quickly so suggestions are welcome, demanded even, lol.
Disclaimer: don't own anything. Except Geoff but he's a wet fish so never mind.