Garin next opened his eyes upon hearing the hurried voices of two concerned women. “...Then let’s get his clothes off and-”
“W-What?” He grumbled, his tired and sore throat not adequately expressing the shock that was present.
“Oh, you’re awake… this complicates things.” The healer stepped into Garin’s view and smiled softly. “You’ve got a pretty high fever, so we need to set you in a cold bath.”
“Mm-not…” Garin struggled to speak, as the fever drained so much of his energy. He ended up falling asleep again right then, only to wake again when the two women set him in the tub of cold water. He tried to get out, but Nadia would gently place a hand on his chest and push him back into the water, no matter how he struggled.
“C-Cold…” He found himself shivering badly, the most uncomfortable he’d ever been. He couldn’t fall back asleep, and he felt numb.
“I know, but we need to break this fever.” Nadia explained, pressing a damp cloth against his forehead. “You have been asleep for a few days now, barely eating at all. The healer thinks you were out in the rain for too long… and I agree.”
“I’m very tired. I want to sleep.”
“You should eat first… I’ll make you something.”
“Soup…?”
“No,” Nadia frowned. “I made that mistake the first night, and raised your fever! Don’t you remember that?” She sighed heavily, giving him a look of pity. “I shall make you something else…”
“But your soup is warm, and good.”
“No, means no, Garin.” She shook her head, then giggled a slight. “How about I promise to make you some soup when your fever breaks?” Upon receiving his nod of approval, Nadia stood up, then nodded to the healer. “It’s your turn to make sure he stays… good luck.”
---
Nadia was left to her own devices in the kitchen, trying to figure out what would be best suited for Garin since soup was out of the question. Cold soup was definitely out of the question as well! She sighed and looked through the cabinets and the preserves to try and figure out what to make for him. She sighed and put her hands to her hips as she paced the kitchen in dismay. A sandwich seemed far too clunky for him to try and eat with the way his energy was. Bacon was something he enjoyed, even though it had to be fried and she was certain he could enjoy eating that, even if it was luke warm.
Nadia pulled out a pan and began to fry up some bacon. She cut the bread thin enough that he could eat it without having to open his mouth too wide to chew. She then had the idea to cut it into smaller pieces, something bite sized that he wouldn’t have to struggle with. The next thing was to let the cheese melt over the warm bacon and then the sandwich would be perfect. So in the end, even though she’d previously decided against sandwiches, a sandwich was what she ended up making. Once she was done cooking, she came back in the room to see the healer helping Garin out of the tub and back into something comfortable that was not covered in fever.
