Burning Ice & Freezing Fire

Fog!?

"...You know that I've been living here, since my adoptive parents left me. I found this place when I've been strolling around, shortly after we got here and used it as my secret invention place for those things...my...brother should rather not see... I moved here pretty much the very next day when I was on my own. The only things I took along were my...adoptive father's orange chair...and this, my old bed... Although...I rarely use it. I mostly sleep in the chair, because..." the felf hesitates and swallows hard "...Well, you know about my sleeping troubles already... Also, since I...woke up that one day in bed and was all alone...it's even harder to fall asleep in here..." he can't help but snuggle up even closer to the hero lying next to him. Sportacus wraps his arm around his boyfriend even tighter, trying to protect him from his painful memories...although he's struggling with his own a little as well while listening to Robbie's explanations. The felf's head is resting on the hero's chest, but not mainly for comfort reasons. He can easily monitor the elf's heartbeat and breathing like this, and because he still doesn't know what Nine did to the other, he feels like it's better to keep an eye on that...

"You'll never wake up alone again, if you don't want to. I won't let you," murmurs Sportacus lowly and squeezes Robbie's hand, he's holding in his own. The felf smiles and returns the loving squeeze "I know you won't... So... As I said, I spent quite some time here...and as I now know, I also used my fairy magic down here almost daily, at least when Nine, and later you were in town. The few years in between has probably been the only time when I was...mostly lazy... However, you're right. Since I am down here, I barely feel the effects of the crystal anymore. It's a light tugging or stinging at worst, but nothing more..."

"Wait..." the hero is still dizzy, but somehow his mind manages to understand where this is leading "...My crystal also never showed me when you were in trouble down here..." his eyes widen "So this wasn't just because it recognized that your nature was foreign sometimes..."

Robbie shakes his head "No. Not mainly. I guess...because of the amount of fairy magic I subconsciously used to craft my inventions and disguises there's...some kind of...magic fog surrounding my lair now that deflects the crystal's power... It's only an assumption of course, but..." he shrugs weakly.

"...a very plausible one," Sportacus nods slowly.

"Hm... But what I don't understand...is why you obviously get worse than better down here now..." the felf runs his tongue over his lips. Sportacus gently strokes his shoulder "Don't worry about me. I'm fine. The only thing that matters now is that we got some more time thanks to Stephanie's marvelous idea to take you here. I will..." he breaks up when out of a sudden an incredible strong wave of sickness washes over him and he starts to pant heavily.

"Sportacus!" Robbie sits up at once, pulling the other into a sitting position as well, placing one hand on his chest, searching his gaze "Easy! Deep breaths! Come on, you know what you told me the whole time!" he tries a weak smile, but he can sense that this is something different entirely...

Suddenly Sportacus starts to retch, his body not listening to anything he wants it to do anymore. Robbie jumps up and gets a bucket standing not too far away from the bed already.

"It's all right. Relax," he holds his friend the bucket and soothingly strokes his back, feeling strange about the suddenly reversed positions they're in now, but even much more worried about the elf.

Sportacus weakly shakes his head and rasps "Nine..." at this moment he heaves heavily, his body convulses and the last thing he remembers is falling slack against Robbie, his vision blurring...and finally turning black...