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Fever	By : RaceUlfson Category: Final Fantasy VIII > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 753 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy VIII, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 17
- 18
- 19
Originally posted as �Father�s House 2� and reposted here
with minor additions and full permission and support of Acid Rain. Sap warning.

Fever: Chapter 14

�Everybody�s got the fever
�That is something you should know�
(�Fever� by Peggy Lee)

Kiros woke up, unwillingly, with Ward trying to put another
cold compress on him. �What? �Thirsty� what�s going on, where did the
aliens go�?�

�� Ward put down the compress and poured him some cool
water to drink. He sat down again and took Kiros in his arms, holding him up to
drink from the offered glass.

And Kiros needed holding up � he was so weak he could barely
move. His back hurt � it always hurt
�just a little� but now it was like he was on fire, not the dull ache that
heralded old age peeking at him from where it waited a few years ahead.

Kiros sipped the
water because he had not the strength to gulp it greedily as he wanted. Just sipping exhausted him. He looked around� the room was so bright,
everything looked washed out. Ward was
signing at him but it was too washed out � he couldn�t make out the finer
nuances. �I can�t see very well, why is
it so bright in here? What�s going on?�

Ward leaned over and turned off the one single little
bedside lamp and things looked less washed out. He signed again. �You�ve
caught the Fever the SeeDs have. It�s
spread by blood, I think, and magic accelerates and compounds it. You caught it in a matter of hours and
you�re � already different looking.�

Kiros had a feeling as if his innards were falling away,
into some deep pit in the depths of his soul.
�How different? I�m not growing
feelers or duckbills or anything?� He
said, feeling his face a little frantically.

Ward made the whispery noise that Kiros associated with him
laughing. He signed �No� I went away to
get a shower and when I came back, your ears were pointed. Your eyes look bigger. I think there are some other changes, but I
can�t be sure. Your teeth look
different. It must be magic, no one can
change that fast without it.�

Kiros felt a little miffed, his vanity had been showing and
he knew it. �I don�t look freakish, do
I?�

Another of Ward�s hoarse whispery chuckles squeezed out of
the man�s throat, which just made Kiros mad.
He looked away irritably. �Fine,
be that way.�

A big, heavy hand touched Kiros�s chin and tipped his head
back towards him. Ward signed, �Don�t
look away from me� I can�t talk to you if you look away.�

�Well that�s fine with me!
You�re just laughing at me anyway.�
He sniffled. �Anyone would think
I was Laguna� Laguna! Is he all
right? Is Squall? What happened?!�

Ward shrugged.
�They�re talking to Laguna now.�

In another room:

�Okay. Now, let me
get this straight.� Laguna paced around.
�You came into the room, supposedly here to speak to our SeeDs who were
infected with the Fever that YOU know something about, and you tried to summon
Irvine to you.�

�He�s in Heat.� The
alien man, Rahlk, said impatiently. �He
has no Man.�

�And then, when Commander Leonhart indicated that you should
back off, you switched your attention to him and started some kind of charm
spell, which didn�t work.�

�I invoked my power as a Man and was telling him his proper
place.�

�Sure. And then when
that didn�t work anyway, you did some kind of attack spell that stripped
Squall�s willpower away and were going to try to FUCK HIM IN MY LIVING ROOM?!�

�� It is � ritually acceptable in�� It did sound a little
lame, even to Rahlk.

The Woman took over.
�He challenged Lord Rahlk�s right to a d�thala, unwed, unclaimed, no
family, and he himself is a d�thala, unwed, unclaimed, and has no family! Everyone knows that the Commander is an
orphan from nowhere, that he is ��

�What does that have to do with guests in my home attacking
other guests in my home? Do you people
even have rudimentary ideas about hospitality, or how much damage you did to my
reputation? You, guests in my home,
violated every rule of hospitality I can think of. When you attacked Squall Leonhart, it is as if I invited him here
as a part of a trap. Now, how are we
going to fix this? We aren�t. My reputation is damaged, period.�

�Your reputation is irrelevant! You have been a poor host; I have been treated as if I am some
kind of Mortal being instead of �� Being bound to a hard chair had improved
neither the Woman�s diplomatic skills nor her temper.

�Lady� you want me to show you how mortal you are?� Laguna smiled at her, and the man with her
stiffened as if he were the one being threatened. �As far as I�m concerned, you�re just another lying piece of shit
who ruined that meeting. You attacked
Kiros for no reason at all as far as I could tell.�

�I am a Woman!�

�Er� so? I�m Laguna
Loire, I�m a man, you�re a Woman, whoopdeedoo.
You�re a Woman in my house who�s causing problems.� Laguna paced faster.
�You�re an alien bitch who needs to jump on her broomstick and fly back
wherever you came from, cuz I ain�t buying your line of crap.� He stopped and bent down slightly to talk
directly to the Woman�s face. �You�re a woman so you can just attack anyone you
want to? Wait, I�m getting distracted
from the real point here.�

Laguna straighten up and smiled at them sweetly. �I want you off my planet. If you want to continue relations with us,
get someone here who - �

�How DARE You!!� The
Woman spit venomously. �You do not
dictate -�

>Ka-click.<

She stared at the machine gun pointed once more between her
pearly breasts.

�Actually, while I have the machinegun, you should probably
not raise your voice to me.� Laguna
smiled his most charming smile. �Or say really stupid shit like you�ve been
spouting the last two hours or so about how you�re special and we�re poo.� He winked at her. �I really don�t like being talked to like I�m poo. So I�ll dictate, you listen, �kay?�

Lord Rahlk cleared his throat. �I will have to try to kill you if you shoot at her.�

�Oh, that�s okay, I�d planned to shoot you first.� Laguna smiled and pointed the machine gun at
him instead. �Those cuffs too tight for
you? I hope so.�

Laguna�s pleasant expression never changed. �Now, as I was
saying. You two can be returned upright
and under your own power or in several small plastic baggies, I don�t care
which. If you wish to continue
relations with this planet, your people are going to have to send people who
are used to actually sucking up a little to the guys who think they rule here
unless you want us savages with our lousy manners to just rip your heads off
and shit down your necks like the primitives we are.�

He grinned. �Cuz I�ve seen your ship, I�ve seen you fight,
and I think I can take ya.� Laguna
winked at Rahlk, very puckishly. �I�ve
beaten tougher � trust me.�

Laguna�s eyes hardened, though the smile stayed
playful. It was actually a little creepy
to Rahlk, who�d been thinking what a total Ditz this pretty creature was only 3
hours ago. Laguna looked in Rahlk�s lap
and then into his eyes. �Much tougher. Send someone who doesn�t let his dick ruin
diplomatic meetings. You told me you
were going to help us with this Fever, which you implied was your people�s
fault.�

�No. That�s
incorrect.� The Woman said
stiffly. He�d never gotten any kind of
a name for her. �We said we knew of the
fever your people had and we believed it originated with our own race. We were interested in tracking the Bloodline
with which the SeeDs have been infected.�

Laguna�s fever bright eyes flickered from face to face, the
alien visages surprisingly easy for him to read. �You never meant to help us.
You don�t care that we�re infected, you just wanted to see who did it?�

�Who did it is immaterial.
We are interested in which bloodline Squall Leonhart carries. It could be advantageous to us to �� she
stopped suddenly.

�Bloodlines. Like
breeding dogs or chocobos. You want to
see what breed he is. Which means
you�re interested in breeding him.
Which explains some of what went on.
You�re not here to help us at all.
You�re on a roundup to catch some strays.� Laguna said, his smile never wavering, though Rahlk noticed that
Laguna�s eyes became more and more intense and his smile was more feral than it
had been.

�Well, you tell your
people that there�s a new breed around.
And if you think we�re domesticated little pets you can scoop up, you
come on and try. If this thing makes us
obey dominance imperatives, you come here, and you fuckin� try us, you wimpy,
treacherous bags of shit. We�ll bend
you over like we did Galbadia, Adel, and Ultimecia. Got it? I�m used to this
shit and I�ll be waiting to show you the real law of the jungle whenever you�re
ready to learn. Don�t bother sending
another envoy if you�re not going to help us.
Your ships come within range of our sensors and we�ll blow you out of
the sky if you�re not contacting us with very apologetic professional suck ups
that know how to apply their lips directly to my proverbial ass. Do we all read the same page here?�

Lord Rahlk cleared his throat. �There�s a very good chance
your Leonhart and his people are from a bloodline we thought lost to us. We are in a position to make offers to get
that bloodline back.�

�Then you guys should have a lil� meeting about that and
start putting on the chap stick so you can kiss my ass enough to make me think
I should listen to what you have to say.
In case you hadn�t figured it out, I am severely pissed. And I don�t want to seem like a bad host,
but get the fuck out of my house.�
Laguna gestured to the 2 guards who watched from the door, and they
opened it up for him. �I expect you to
be gone before I think about it again or I�ll have you both tossed into Odine�s
lab like he wants and let him vivisect you.�
He smiled and bounced on out.

Rahlk cast a glance at the Woman. �I told you before we came they did not respect the Divinity of
Women here. They just got over a war
casting down three women from power.
The women here either have none or abuse it to the point where they are
hated tyrants.�

�Shut up. Call the
ship when we�re out of their jamming equipment and lets get off of this
miserably hot hell hole.�

In Commander Leonhart�s suite:

�He usually likes to sleep alone,� Selphie said doubtfully,
wringing out a cloth to prior to bathing Squall�s face and hands.

�He hasn�t been sleepin�, Darlin� that�s the whole
point. Whatever those aliens did to him, at least he�s gettin� a little rest.�
Irvine shifted in the bed so Squall was lying on top of him. Now Selphie could
fuss and he could cuddle. Squall made an inarticulate protest and Irvine kissed
his messy chocolate hair, soothing him.

�Those guys! I wished I used a distance weapon, so I could
shoot them like Sir Laguna did. That hoity toity slut and that man, who
did he think he was? Although you shouldn�t shoot Ambassadors no matter how
much they tick you off, I guess. Will there be a war, now? We�ve had peace
since Ulti, sort of, which is a good thing, but kinda bad for business. Squall
had to raise the tuition, he hated doing that, Quis told me.�

�We will be both out of commission a while if there is one,
Darlin�. I can still shoot but I don�t think you should be front line in your
delicate condition.�

Selphie rolled her eyes. �Oh, please, Irvy, I feel
fine. No morning sickness or anything. Funny how some of us like Zell, Quisty,
and me breezed right through the fever and you guys are having so much
trouble.�

�I don�t think that was it, Darlin�. The doc back at
B-Garden said I had different symptoms from everyone else. I think I must have
gotten,� Irvine stumbled over the next word, �pr-pregnant right away, and that�s
why I was so poorly. That nutbar out at the fancy lab here said Rinicat�s
innate healing magic was making it worse, so that�s why she can�t kick it.�

�It can�t be cured with magic,� Selphie said thoughtfully,
eyeing Squall. �In fact, healing magic makes it worse.� She jumped up and ran
over to the ornately carved chest where Squall had stowed his gear. Selphie
rustled around as Irvine tried to watch her over the top of Squall�s head.

�Sunshine? What are you doin�? Squall will flip if he
catches you pawing through his personal things.�

�I�m checking his kit.� She replied, her voice slightly
muffled by the fact that her head was in the chest. Selphie rocked back and sat
on her heels. �Irvy! We�ve only been here a couple days and he�s down at least
a third of his esunas and potions. Can you get addicted to those?�

�I think you can get addicted to feelin� healthy, but that�s
not the same thing. I never heard of anyone getting hooked on potions.�

Selphie came back to sit on the edge of the bed and eyed Squall.
�Have you seen him casting on himself?� She made the gesture to start a Draw
spell.

�Don�t even think it,� Squall growled.

Irvine blushed, embarrassed at being caught, but Selphie was
unabashed. �Squallycat, you must stay in bed and rest. You are killing
yourself. And then what will Irvy do? And Rinoa, too. We need you, and we need
you alive. You just stay there with Irvy. I swear to Hyne if I catch you
out of bed doing something stupid like paperwork, I�ll draw all your spells and
Shiva, too.�

Squall was finding his glare less and less effective and
settled for closing his eyes and nodding once. A temporary surrender, not total
capitulation. Still, it was very nice to be in Irvine�s arms and when his
beautiful cowboy whispered suggestions of how they could past the time while
Squall was bedridden, he couldn�t hold back the faint smile.

Selphie made a satisfied noise. �I�m going to go check on
the others. I�ll let you know right away if Nida or the field team reports
anything but otherwise, Irvy, keep him in the bed. Use those fur lined
handcuffs if you have to.�

Irvine winked at her. �Maybe even if I don�t have to.�

Several hours later:

Laguna came into where Ward was trying to get Kiros to
settle down, with little effect. Kiros was
twitchy, bitchy and whiney. He was
hot. He was cold. He was thirsty. He was nauseated. He was hungry.
He was bored. He was
worried.

Ward was ready to strangle him.

�Hey, Ward, how�s the sickee?� Laguna grinned and leaned over to look at Kiros. �I just got a report on � Kiros, where�s
that scar that you had on your chest?
Little pink line, remember?�

Kiros fussed a little with the covers and peered. �I� don�t know.�

�Huh. You�ve got the
ears and teeth already, too? It�s kind
of interesting, that SeeD doctor said that some of the scars on the kids
vanished entirely, but the tattoo on that martial artist kid and the scar on
Squall�s face both stayed. She has a
theory that the magic might leave them scars that they find defining.� He looked at Kiros critically. �Shit, you look younger than me again. Is that fair?�

�Bah.� Kiros
sulked. �I am younger than you!�

�But you didn�t look it.
Er� I mean��

Ward made shut up motions.

Kiros threw a glass at Laguna, who, to everyone�s surprise,
caught it before it smacked him in the forehead. The water in it splooshed all
over him, the floor and the ceiling.

Ward signed, �Good catch, Laguna.�

Sputtering water off his lips, Laguna nodded. �Thanks. Anyway, if the paperwork�s right, the Fever,
while growing new parts like fangs and points for your ears, also heals up
scars and stuff, using some kind of �body image� thing that I don�t quite
understand so things like piercings might stay, scars that have desirable �
huh. Wonder why Squall still has that
one right in the middle of his face�?�

He scratched his damp head as water dripped from his
hair. �I guess I�ll go find a
towel. Congrats on having a second
chance at teenage, Kiros. You look
17. Eat something, you�re too
thin. Maybe a cupcake or something, I�m
hungry.� Laguna wandered out again, talking to himself encouragingly about how
cupcakes weren�t really bad for you.
One of the guards steered the President away from the public areas �
they were under quarantine, after all.

Kiros was befuddled, lost between flattered and horked off
and just plain sick. Ward studied him,
his faded blue eyes noting the way Kiros�s skin had tightened up, the few
wrinkles he�d gained in his smooth dark face vanished, several scars were just
gone� and � so were the few streaks of silver that had been working their way
into Kiros�s dark hair.

That was impossible.
Or this disease was more than just a little magic. He tugged a dark lock and looked at it.

�What?�

He signed. �You really are younger. You look like you did when we first met,
almost. Except you didn�t have points
on ears or teeth.� He sat next to him
on the edge of the bed, his weight rolling Kiros towards him a little. �Your hands don�t have the parrying scars �
but your calluses are still there. How
odd.�

�I guess I�m the first real adult to catch the disease � the
SeeDs are all under 21.� Kiros shivered
and Ward leaned over and tucked the blankets around him again. �I don�t really look that much younger, do
I?�

Ward nodded and grinned at him, folding his arms across his
chest and making a baby rocking motion.

�Oh, you shit, I am not!
Give me a mirror!�

Ward obligingly brought him a hand mirror. He didn�t see how Kiros could see in this
light, but he sure couldn�t see with any MORE light. He watched Kiros stare into the mirror and touch his face � it
wasn�t a huge dramatic difference for anyone who didn�t see that face every
day. But Ward knew � it must be a
little bit of a shock to see yourself suddenly youthful, unscarred, the way one
only saw one�s self in dreams. And of
course, Kiros looked with scowling disapproval at the pointed ears and the
sharp canines, trying to determine if they marred or enhanced his beauty. Ward laughed.

Kiros�s eyes darted up at him. �Are you laughing at me?!�

Ward signed �NoooOoooOooo� while laughing some more. Kiros�s sulk intensified.

Ward gave him a careful hug. �You are still beautiful, Kiros.
Stop looking for flaws. There
are none. The ears and teeth just make
you look more exotic.�

A half-disbelieving glance at Ward and back at the mirror
was given before Kiros answered. �You really think so? Hyne, I hate being so vain sometimes, but ��

�You are very beautiful.
And you have your youth back.
The little scars that pulled, the back ache you were starting to get
when the weather was cold and damp� all of that will be gone, if what Laguna
read in the reports is correct.�

Kiros didn�t want to say anything, but he suspected Ward�s
words were true. That nagging backache
he�d been getting for years had been horrible for the first hours he�d awakened
with the fever and then� it just vanished.
Along with his scars. He was
more than happy about the backache part � he had not let anyone know how bad it
had been getting. He looked up at ward
and blinked a few times. He wasn�t as
blind as he had been 12 hours ago. A
fitful few hours of sleep seemed to clear up his vision greatly. And Ward � Ward looked� well� old. He had suffered a lot of injuries and stress
over the years. �Ward� what am I going
to do�? I look like a kid� I don�t��

Ward hugged him again, very gently, and kept signing one
handed. �You�ll take care of Laguna,
like you always have. He has it
too. You guys will be young
together. I don�t mind. I was always the old man, you were always
the baby.�

�I was not. Laguna
was always the one toddling around falling off of things and getting into
trouble, for all that he is the oldest.�

�You know what I mean.�

Kiros snagged Ward�s hand abruptly and pressed it to his
cheek. �I don�t want to do this without
you.�

�� Ward sighed and
closed his sun-faded blue eyes. He
didn�t want poor Kiros to have to go on without him but just the idea that his
friend had regained his youth made him happy.
Kiros was so vain� and he would not handle old age well. Besides, Laguna needed Kiros. He and Kiros had been Laguna�s support after
Rain died. He hated to think of Laguna
alone.

�Ward� aren�t you afraid you�re going to catch it?�

He disentangled his hand from Kiros�s. �No, it�s spread by biting, sexual
intercourse, or blood contact, and if Odine is right, it is force incubated by
magic. That�s why you caught it as fast
as you did; you were under a spell when you came into contact with the
blood. And using a spell to wake you up
just made it worse.�

�If you caught it, you�d �� Kiros�s eyes searched Ward�s
scarred face, dark eyes with a golden cast to them now, the pupils round in the
soft light but Ward knew they were knife slitted in normal light.

�If I catch it, I catch it.
But I�m not worried about it.
I�ll be fine. I just want you
to�� he had to pause as Kiros took his hand again and rubbed his face on
it. He smiled a little and wished for a
brief moment he could speak out loud again.

>crunch<

Ward�s eyes got very big and round and he made a strangled
hissing yell that was about as loud as the sound of a cream puff hitting a
carpeted floor.

Kiros licked the blood off Ward�s hand and cast a Cura on
him. Ward felt dizzy for a moment, off
center. � Oh� shit�

��!!!!�

�Now I�m not going to have to be a kid without you.�

Ward blinked at the bite and then at Kiros. ��!!�

�You said you weren�t worried about it. Besides� it removes scars. It heals old wounds.� Kiros reached up and touched Ward�s
throat. �I would dearly love to be able
to hear your voice again. I want you
with me� it�s not fair that I should get this and you should not� good or
bad. It separates us and I hate that.�

Ward blinked down at Kiros and pulled him close in a gentle
hug that was still hard enough to leave Kiros breathless, nodding. He signed �Alright � but if you start
smelling like that cowboy kid, I�m not going to be held responsible for what I
do to you. I can�t even be in the same
room with him. You brought this on yourself.�

Kiros flashed his pretty white smile at Ward and snuggled up
contentedly. �Who said I�d mind?�
- 17
- 18
- 19
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Fever