HtLJ FIC: Spring Fever
Title: Spring Fever
Fandom: Hercules: the Legendary Journeys
Pairing: Hercules/Ioalus
Rating: PG
Word Count: 2217
Summary: After being with the Light and then returning to Earth, Iolaus has forgotten how to be sick.
Written for: Catnap in Yuletide 2007. She basically she wanted fluffy h/c with Iolaus sick.
"You know with this full moon, we could keep going. If we don't stop to hunt or make a cooking fire, we could be in Athens in two or three hours. We can get a late dinner at the inn." Hercules turned to look back at Iolaus who had been a few steps behind him most of the day. At one point he would have said his companion was being uncharacteristically quiet, but that wasn't entirely true anymore. Since Iolaus' return from the Light, he'd had more moments of quiet introspection. Most people might not have noticed, but Hercules did.
"Two or three hours, huh?" Iolaus asked.
Hercules stopped to let him catch up. He could see, for the first time, that Iolaus was winded, despite the fact that they'd been walking at just about half their normal pace. "You okay?"
"Fine, fine," Iolaus said, continuing to walk even when he'd reached Hercules.
Hercules shrugged and caught up to him in a few easy steps. "We could stop, though," he said conversationally. He slowed his pace to stay next to Iolaus.
"If you want to make it to Athens tonight, we can make it to Athens," Iolaus said, but almost immediately stopped and bent over, bracing his hands on his knees. "I just need a second to catch my breath. Then we'll head into Athens."
Hercules frowned at him. "Right now I'd say you'd be lucky to make it into that clearing up ahead. Why don't we make camp by the lake? Athens will be there in the morning."
"I'm fine, Hercules. You wanted to get to the inn and get some real food for dinner. We can do that." Iolaus started walking again, but Hercules could see him weaving.
Hercules lifted his sack. "I have some bread and a little bit of cheese. There's bound to be fruit near the lake. Let's stop, you don't look so good."
Iolaus sighed and gave up the act, sagging back against a nearby tree. "I'm not used to this anymore," he said quietly.
"Long walks?" Hercules asked, resting a hand on Iolaus' shoulder.
"Being sick. No one was sick there, you know? Not anyone, not ever."
Hercules frowned again. He hadn't thought about that. Iolaus didn't talk much about his time with the Light. Not the details, not the day in and day out existence of being there. Sure he told the stories of fighting off the bad guys and protecting the good guys, but never about what happened between those moments. And he'd joked about not being hungry and missing food, but it was all surface stuff. "Let's go make camp by the lake." He kept his arm around Iolaus' shoulders and let him lean against him as they made their way the few hundred yards to the lakeshore. If he'd thought there was a snowball's chance in Hades that Iolaus would let himself be carried, he would have done it. But that was one thing that even a tussle with Nemesis hadn't cured him of. Iolaus would cling to his pride with every ounce of strength he possessed.
When they reached the grassy shore, Iolaus slid down against a tree and rested his head on his knees. "Just give me a minute. I'll get up and help you get some firewood and then see about... I don't know, there have to be some fish in this pond."
Hercules shook his head fondly and sat down next to Iolaus. "Give it up, Iolaus. You're sick. I've got food and there's tons of driftwood around here. Just rest, I'll get a fire going and then we'll see what we've got for dinner."
"The fire sounds good," Iolaus said, his cheek still resting on his knees.
Hercules reached over to wipe his sweaty hair out of his face. He raised both eyebrows at the heat coming off Iolaus' forehead in waves. "Or maybe we'll skip the fire. You're generating enough heat for both of us." He stroked back Iolaus' hair a few more times than was strictly necessary to get it out of his eyes.
"Actually, if you don't mind, I think I'm going to skip dinner too. I really just want to rest."
"Stomach bothering you?" He looked over in time to catch Iolaus shrug. As close as he was going to get to an affirmation. Hercules began untying both his and Iolaus' blankets from their packs. He laid them, one atop the other, on the ground near the tree before shifting Iolaus around.
"What are you doing?" Iolaus complained as Hercules manhandled him.
"Getting us both comfortable." He leaned his own back on Iolaus' tree and shifted Iolaus around until he was curled up between Hercules' legs, his head on Hercules' chest.
Iolaus shivered as he settled. He tried to blame the fever, but inside he knew it was more than that.
"Comfortable?" Hercules asked as Iolaus shifted and let his eyelids droop.
"Yeah," Iolaus answered simply, afraid that if he said more, he'd say too much.
He felt Hercules take a deep breath and heard him blow it out in a huff. "Have I overstepped myself, Iolaus? We haven't talked about this in all the time you've been back."
Iolaus sighed himself. "You've tried to bring it up. I've played stupid and changed the subject or made a joke." He pulled his knees up a little closer to his chest, but didn't move away from Hercules.
"I began to think that it meant that things were different now. That you... that we..."
Iolaus wanted to make a smart remark about Hercules being at a loss for words. It was such a rare occasion after all. But he knew this wasn't the time or place. The truth was he'd been avoiding this conversation because he wasn't sure he could handle Hercules saying that he no longer wanted what they had before he'd died. He'd heard about Morrigan but hadn't had the nerve to ask where that was going. He knew in his gut that Hercules had moved on after his death and that someone had taken his place.
And deep in his heart he knew that Hercules would probably be happier with an immortal lover. He'd lost his mortal lover - his wife. In fact now, he'd lost two mortal lovers. No, it was better this way. He tried to quell his already unsteady stomach against what was coming. "It's okay," he forced himself to say through gritted teeth. He tried to play it off as if the grimace were a result of his stomachache, not his heartache.
"What is?" Hercules asked, genuinely puzzled.
Steeling himself, Iolaus sat up. He'd never get through this if he continued to let Hercules hold him like he had all those times before. He pulled the edge of the top blanket around his shoulders, suddenly feeling the chill of the night air.
"I heard about Morrigan," he said flatly.
"You heard what about her?" Hercules said, tilting his head to better see Iolaus in the moonlight.
"That you and her... that you two..." Iolaus couldn't say the words.
Hercules studied him curiously for a second and then rolled his eyes as he suddenly understood. "You know... I think that fever's gotten into your brain. Morrigan and I... It's not like that. I'll tell you the whole story at some point, but it's not like you're thinking."
Iolaus looked up at him, his face showing clearly that he wasn't sure if he should believe his oldest friend or not.
"I wouldn't lie to you Iolaus. I never have. Why would I start now?"
Iolaus sagged, causing Hercules to reach out and steady him before he toppled all the way over. "I'm sorry, Herc. Maybe you're right, maybe the fever has gotten into my brain."
"Will you come back over here now?"
Iolaus nodded and moved back to where he'd been, leaning his head on Hercules' shoulder again.
"Better?"
Iolaus sighed. "Yeah. Sorry."
Hercules snuggled Iolaus against him and threaded his hand between Iolaus' vest and his skin, rubbing light circles on the small of Iolaus' back until he fell asleep.
Hercules didn't sleep so easily. He hadn't realized that someone had told Iolaus about Morrigan. There was nothing he was ashamed of, but the fact that Iolaus had gone around feeling like he had been replaced disturbed him. He wished he'd picked up on that sooner. He could have forced the conversation any one of those times Iolaus had blown it off.
He shrugged and made himself more comfortable against the tree. Water under the bridge, he supposed. He watched the stars shift overhead for a while before arranging the two of them on the blankets and drifting off himself.
"Herc? Hey, Herc?"
Hercules opened one eye, Iolaus was plastered against him, shivering even though he was still giving off a forge-worthy amount of heat. "Hm? You okay?"
"I'm freezing. Think we can pull one of these blankets on top of us?" Iolaus tried to wiggle even closer to him.
"I don't think that's a very good idea," Hercules told him as he pushed sweaty hair out of Iolaus' face again.
"But it's freezing!" Iolaus complained.
"It's really not. It's a warm spring night. You have a fever and..." he trailed off as he heard something or someone in the trees behind them.
"What? What's wrong?" Iolaus tried to sit up, his eyes darting back and forth anxiously.
"Stay here," Hercules said, spotting a lone figure moving slowly towards them.
Too tired to do anything else, Iolaus nodded and lay back down as Hercules moved into the woods.
By the time he got to him, a young man was using a rather ornate knife to strip the bark off of a large tree, thinking himself hidden in the long vine-like branches of the tree. Hercules moved stealthily toward him, watching him work. "What are you doing?" he asked loudly as he approached.
The man didn't even startle. "I am a disciple of Apollo. He sent me a dream. I was to come to you and prepare an infusion of willow bark. Are you ill?"
Hercules looked up and sent a silent thanks to his brother, pleased that Apollo seemed to be making an overture to put their past differences behind them. "Not me. My friend. Iolaus. He has a fever."
"This will help," the disciple said as he looked into his bag, apparently convinced he'd gathered enough. "Go back to him. I will bring the medicine when it's ready."
Hercules nodded and clasped the man on the shoulder. "Thank you. And thank Apollo for me."
He went back and lay down next to Iolaus who snuggled back into him for warmth, despite the fact that that was the last thing he needed.
"Everything okay?"
"Other than the fact that I may have to revise my opinion of my brother, just fine." He kissed Iolaus' forehead.
"Which one? Who was out there?" Iolaus yawned and fidgeted trying to get comfortable. "Gods, I hurt everywhere."
"It'll be over soon. That was one of Apollo's followers. He's making you some medicine now." Hercules looked down the beach to where a small campfire was burning.
"Apollo is doing you a favor?" Iolaus had a look that clearly said he wasn't convinced that the idea wasn't a product of his fevered mind.
"I guess he wants to bury the hatchet." Hercules mentally gave Apollo points for knowing that the best way to score points with him was to help the people he loved.
"I'll believe that when I see it," Iolaus groused, shivering.
Hercules let the conversation drop as Iolaus began yawning more frequently. When he saw that the fire was banked, he shifted Iolaus around so that he was sitting against Hercules chest.
"Here we are," the young man said as he handed a skin of warm tea to Hercules. I've tried to sweeten it with juice from some of the berries over there," he pointed down the shore, "but it may not disguise the taste much. He needs to drink half of this now and the other half in the morning."
Hercules accepted the skin. "Thank you."
The man, who never had identified himself, just nodded and headed back into the trees.
Iolaus was looking up at him with confusion. "What was that about? Was he talking about me?"
"Yeah, you need to drink this," Hercules said holding up the skin.
"Tell me it's strong wine. I need something to knock me out. I'm so tired and I can't fall asleep. Makes no sense," he groused.
"It's medicine. Here." Hercules held the lip of the pouch to Iolaus' lips. Iolaus took a sip and grimaced. "Swallow it!" Hercules admonished when Iolaus looked ready to spit it out.
"It tastes like wood!" Iolaus complained after swallowing as ordered.
"It is wood. But you're going to drink it anyway."
Hercules expected far more argument from his friend, but all he got was a sigh of capitulation. "You owe me a jug of the good stuff when we get into Athens tomorrow. I'll probably still be getting the taste of this stuff out of my mouth then."
Hercules smiled and held up the tea for him again. "You're going to be just fine," he said with a quiet chuckle.
Fandom: Hercules: the Legendary Journeys
Pairing: Hercules/Ioalus
Rating: PG
Word Count: 2217
Summary: After being with the Light and then returning to Earth, Iolaus has forgotten how to be sick.
Written for: Catnap in Yuletide 2007. She basically she wanted fluffy h/c with Iolaus sick.
"You know with this full moon, we could keep going. If we don't stop to hunt or make a cooking fire, we could be in Athens in two or three hours. We can get a late dinner at the inn." Hercules turned to look back at Iolaus who had been a few steps behind him most of the day. At one point he would have said his companion was being uncharacteristically quiet, but that wasn't entirely true anymore. Since Iolaus' return from the Light, he'd had more moments of quiet introspection. Most people might not have noticed, but Hercules did.
"Two or three hours, huh?" Iolaus asked.
Hercules stopped to let him catch up. He could see, for the first time, that Iolaus was winded, despite the fact that they'd been walking at just about half their normal pace. "You okay?"
"Fine, fine," Iolaus said, continuing to walk even when he'd reached Hercules.
Hercules shrugged and caught up to him in a few easy steps. "We could stop, though," he said conversationally. He slowed his pace to stay next to Iolaus.
"If you want to make it to Athens tonight, we can make it to Athens," Iolaus said, but almost immediately stopped and bent over, bracing his hands on his knees. "I just need a second to catch my breath. Then we'll head into Athens."
Hercules frowned at him. "Right now I'd say you'd be lucky to make it into that clearing up ahead. Why don't we make camp by the lake? Athens will be there in the morning."
"I'm fine, Hercules. You wanted to get to the inn and get some real food for dinner. We can do that." Iolaus started walking again, but Hercules could see him weaving.
Hercules lifted his sack. "I have some bread and a little bit of cheese. There's bound to be fruit near the lake. Let's stop, you don't look so good."
Iolaus sighed and gave up the act, sagging back against a nearby tree. "I'm not used to this anymore," he said quietly.
"Long walks?" Hercules asked, resting a hand on Iolaus' shoulder.
"Being sick. No one was sick there, you know? Not anyone, not ever."
Hercules frowned again. He hadn't thought about that. Iolaus didn't talk much about his time with the Light. Not the details, not the day in and day out existence of being there. Sure he told the stories of fighting off the bad guys and protecting the good guys, but never about what happened between those moments. And he'd joked about not being hungry and missing food, but it was all surface stuff. "Let's go make camp by the lake." He kept his arm around Iolaus' shoulders and let him lean against him as they made their way the few hundred yards to the lakeshore. If he'd thought there was a snowball's chance in Hades that Iolaus would let himself be carried, he would have done it. But that was one thing that even a tussle with Nemesis hadn't cured him of. Iolaus would cling to his pride with every ounce of strength he possessed.
When they reached the grassy shore, Iolaus slid down against a tree and rested his head on his knees. "Just give me a minute. I'll get up and help you get some firewood and then see about... I don't know, there have to be some fish in this pond."
Hercules shook his head fondly and sat down next to Iolaus. "Give it up, Iolaus. You're sick. I've got food and there's tons of driftwood around here. Just rest, I'll get a fire going and then we'll see what we've got for dinner."
"The fire sounds good," Iolaus said, his cheek still resting on his knees.
Hercules reached over to wipe his sweaty hair out of his face. He raised both eyebrows at the heat coming off Iolaus' forehead in waves. "Or maybe we'll skip the fire. You're generating enough heat for both of us." He stroked back Iolaus' hair a few more times than was strictly necessary to get it out of his eyes.
"Actually, if you don't mind, I think I'm going to skip dinner too. I really just want to rest."
"Stomach bothering you?" He looked over in time to catch Iolaus shrug. As close as he was going to get to an affirmation. Hercules began untying both his and Iolaus' blankets from their packs. He laid them, one atop the other, on the ground near the tree before shifting Iolaus around.
"What are you doing?" Iolaus complained as Hercules manhandled him.
"Getting us both comfortable." He leaned his own back on Iolaus' tree and shifted Iolaus around until he was curled up between Hercules' legs, his head on Hercules' chest.
Iolaus shivered as he settled. He tried to blame the fever, but inside he knew it was more than that.
"Comfortable?" Hercules asked as Iolaus shifted and let his eyelids droop.
"Yeah," Iolaus answered simply, afraid that if he said more, he'd say too much.
He felt Hercules take a deep breath and heard him blow it out in a huff. "Have I overstepped myself, Iolaus? We haven't talked about this in all the time you've been back."
Iolaus sighed himself. "You've tried to bring it up. I've played stupid and changed the subject or made a joke." He pulled his knees up a little closer to his chest, but didn't move away from Hercules.
"I began to think that it meant that things were different now. That you... that we..."
Iolaus wanted to make a smart remark about Hercules being at a loss for words. It was such a rare occasion after all. But he knew this wasn't the time or place. The truth was he'd been avoiding this conversation because he wasn't sure he could handle Hercules saying that he no longer wanted what they had before he'd died. He'd heard about Morrigan but hadn't had the nerve to ask where that was going. He knew in his gut that Hercules had moved on after his death and that someone had taken his place.
And deep in his heart he knew that Hercules would probably be happier with an immortal lover. He'd lost his mortal lover - his wife. In fact now, he'd lost two mortal lovers. No, it was better this way. He tried to quell his already unsteady stomach against what was coming. "It's okay," he forced himself to say through gritted teeth. He tried to play it off as if the grimace were a result of his stomachache, not his heartache.
"What is?" Hercules asked, genuinely puzzled.
Steeling himself, Iolaus sat up. He'd never get through this if he continued to let Hercules hold him like he had all those times before. He pulled the edge of the top blanket around his shoulders, suddenly feeling the chill of the night air.
"I heard about Morrigan," he said flatly.
"You heard what about her?" Hercules said, tilting his head to better see Iolaus in the moonlight.
"That you and her... that you two..." Iolaus couldn't say the words.
Hercules studied him curiously for a second and then rolled his eyes as he suddenly understood. "You know... I think that fever's gotten into your brain. Morrigan and I... It's not like that. I'll tell you the whole story at some point, but it's not like you're thinking."
Iolaus looked up at him, his face showing clearly that he wasn't sure if he should believe his oldest friend or not.
"I wouldn't lie to you Iolaus. I never have. Why would I start now?"
Iolaus sagged, causing Hercules to reach out and steady him before he toppled all the way over. "I'm sorry, Herc. Maybe you're right, maybe the fever has gotten into my brain."
"Will you come back over here now?"
Iolaus nodded and moved back to where he'd been, leaning his head on Hercules' shoulder again.
"Better?"
Iolaus sighed. "Yeah. Sorry."
Hercules snuggled Iolaus against him and threaded his hand between Iolaus' vest and his skin, rubbing light circles on the small of Iolaus' back until he fell asleep.
Hercules didn't sleep so easily. He hadn't realized that someone had told Iolaus about Morrigan. There was nothing he was ashamed of, but the fact that Iolaus had gone around feeling like he had been replaced disturbed him. He wished he'd picked up on that sooner. He could have forced the conversation any one of those times Iolaus had blown it off.
He shrugged and made himself more comfortable against the tree. Water under the bridge, he supposed. He watched the stars shift overhead for a while before arranging the two of them on the blankets and drifting off himself.
"Herc? Hey, Herc?"
Hercules opened one eye, Iolaus was plastered against him, shivering even though he was still giving off a forge-worthy amount of heat. "Hm? You okay?"
"I'm freezing. Think we can pull one of these blankets on top of us?" Iolaus tried to wiggle even closer to him.
"I don't think that's a very good idea," Hercules told him as he pushed sweaty hair out of Iolaus' face again.
"But it's freezing!" Iolaus complained.
"It's really not. It's a warm spring night. You have a fever and..." he trailed off as he heard something or someone in the trees behind them.
"What? What's wrong?" Iolaus tried to sit up, his eyes darting back and forth anxiously.
"Stay here," Hercules said, spotting a lone figure moving slowly towards them.
Too tired to do anything else, Iolaus nodded and lay back down as Hercules moved into the woods.
By the time he got to him, a young man was using a rather ornate knife to strip the bark off of a large tree, thinking himself hidden in the long vine-like branches of the tree. Hercules moved stealthily toward him, watching him work. "What are you doing?" he asked loudly as he approached.
The man didn't even startle. "I am a disciple of Apollo. He sent me a dream. I was to come to you and prepare an infusion of willow bark. Are you ill?"
Hercules looked up and sent a silent thanks to his brother, pleased that Apollo seemed to be making an overture to put their past differences behind them. "Not me. My friend. Iolaus. He has a fever."
"This will help," the disciple said as he looked into his bag, apparently convinced he'd gathered enough. "Go back to him. I will bring the medicine when it's ready."
Hercules nodded and clasped the man on the shoulder. "Thank you. And thank Apollo for me."
He went back and lay down next to Iolaus who snuggled back into him for warmth, despite the fact that that was the last thing he needed.
"Everything okay?"
"Other than the fact that I may have to revise my opinion of my brother, just fine." He kissed Iolaus' forehead.
"Which one? Who was out there?" Iolaus yawned and fidgeted trying to get comfortable. "Gods, I hurt everywhere."
"It'll be over soon. That was one of Apollo's followers. He's making you some medicine now." Hercules looked down the beach to where a small campfire was burning.
"Apollo is doing you a favor?" Iolaus had a look that clearly said he wasn't convinced that the idea wasn't a product of his fevered mind.
"I guess he wants to bury the hatchet." Hercules mentally gave Apollo points for knowing that the best way to score points with him was to help the people he loved.
"I'll believe that when I see it," Iolaus groused, shivering.
Hercules let the conversation drop as Iolaus began yawning more frequently. When he saw that the fire was banked, he shifted Iolaus around so that he was sitting against Hercules chest.
"Here we are," the young man said as he handed a skin of warm tea to Hercules. I've tried to sweeten it with juice from some of the berries over there," he pointed down the shore, "but it may not disguise the taste much. He needs to drink half of this now and the other half in the morning."
Hercules accepted the skin. "Thank you."
The man, who never had identified himself, just nodded and headed back into the trees.
Iolaus was looking up at him with confusion. "What was that about? Was he talking about me?"
"Yeah, you need to drink this," Hercules said holding up the skin.
"Tell me it's strong wine. I need something to knock me out. I'm so tired and I can't fall asleep. Makes no sense," he groused.
"It's medicine. Here." Hercules held the lip of the pouch to Iolaus' lips. Iolaus took a sip and grimaced. "Swallow it!" Hercules admonished when Iolaus looked ready to spit it out.
"It tastes like wood!" Iolaus complained after swallowing as ordered.
"It is wood. But you're going to drink it anyway."
Hercules expected far more argument from his friend, but all he got was a sigh of capitulation. "You owe me a jug of the good stuff when we get into Athens tomorrow. I'll probably still be getting the taste of this stuff out of my mouth then."
Hercules smiled and held up the tea for him again. "You're going to be just fine," he said with a quiet chuckle.