To our little ones || Aonung x Neteyam

Chapter 12: Early hours

Aonung fluttered his eyes open. It was a cold morning and he could hear the call or the birds outside the window. He searched the room with his eyes finding Lo'ak soundly asleep on Kiri's bed while he had let Aonung take his, and he didn't complain because it was closer to Neteyam's.

"Good morning." He whispered with a hoarse voice as he stood up to sit on the edge of Neteyam's bed who was already looking at him.

"Morning..." He mumbled with little energy.

"How are you feeling?" He put a hand on his forehead and sighed as he noticed that the fever was still there.

"M' cold...and tired."

"I know, I'm sorry." He went to cheek his feet to find them stone cold. It have been days and they couldn't manage to get the fever down from his head. "Are you hungry?" Neteyam shook his head. "You still need to eat something, why don't we try with some oatmeal again?"

Neteyam didn't respond, instead only looking at him with glossy and heavy-lidded eyes. Aonung knew he must have been exhausted, the constant fever and his trouble breathing didn't allow him to sleep for more than a couple hours every night.

Ao'nung caressed his flushed face careful not to cause any pain thanks to the rashes on his skin as he saw him move a little uncomfortably trying to adjust his position.

"Does your back hurt?" He nodded. "I'm going to lift you, okay?" He put his arms under him as Neteyam wrapped his around his neck. They sat on the bed wrapped around each other for quite some time.

Aonung could hear Neteyam's breathing becoming less labored as his weight was now on top of Ao'nung's form instead of his back.

The utter silence coming from them was broken by the singing of the birds and the breeze dancing through the leaves, but they didn't mind.

"How much did you sleep last night?" Ao'nungs' breath brushed the top of Neteyam's head and his question made him sigh as an answer. "You should sleep some more, breakfast is not for another couple hours. " Neteyam whined as he tried to break the hug, but Ao'nung spoke again. "If you are comfortable like this it's okay."

"Your back will hurt."

"Well, I don't mind." He put a hand on his back when Neteyam turned his head to look at him with a complicated expression. "Would you feel better if a lean against the headboard?"

"Yes.." He mumbled with an almost invisible smile.

"Alright then." He picked him up and repositioned both of them, very carefully to not move Neteyam around so much, leaving his legs resting to the side.

"What if...if your arms get tired?"

"I'll survive." He smiled down at him and brushed his hand against his braids. "Do they feel uncomfortable?"

"A little." He mumbled snuggling against the crock of his neck as a blanket was being put around him.

"Should we get them undone?" Instead of a reply, a yawn came out of Neteyam's mouth, making him exhale through his nose, silently laughing. "Get some sleep now, I have work to do."

Ao'nung took his time unbraiding Neteyam's hair, being careful to not tug on it, and to his surprise, Neteyam's hair was not curly as his, but wavy like his mother's. That little thought made him smile.

Eventually, Lo'ak woke up and they greeted each other with a single nod before he went to the kitchen to make some breakfast.

Their communication was not the best, but after the first few days, they learned that they didn't mind being around each other as long as none of them tried to start a conversation that wasn't regarding Neteyam.