theshatterdome | a tale as old as time.

That isn't what he means at all.

He doesn't know how to let anyone take care of him any more. Chuck has had to take care of himself for so long, and now he has the lives of hundreds of souls on his conscious, if he doesn't break this curse.

"Can I take you back to bed?" he offers, a little weakly.

He snuffles, then nods, pushing his mop of hair away from his face.

"...Please?"

Chuck nods and cradles his arms around Raleigh again, heaving him up with a soft grunt.

He's a little weakened, but not nearly as much as Raleigh is and definitely (clearly) not enough to make this difficult for him.

Raleigh is carried to his room and tucked in against his bed. "If you need anything, speak out loud," he reminds him, pushing the hair back from his face for him.

Raleigh curls against Chuck's broad chest and presses his face into fur, breathing him in.

"I will," he mumbles once he's set down, curling up in his blankets.

"Are you staying?"

Because he knows sometimes you do.

He stills because he hadn't realized Raleigh knew he stayed sometimes.

"I'm wet," he points out. "Still. And bleeding."

But.

"I'll come back when I'm dry and bandaged." If Raleigh wants.

He knows. You can't crawl in bed with an insomniac and go unnoticed.

"Yes. Please."

Come back. Keep him company. Keep him warm.

Well he didn't know he's an insomniac.

It'll be some time and Raleigh may have already fallen asleep. But in Chuck's defense, he has a lot of fur and it dries slowly, even with the help of fire.

But he does return and gently curl himself around Raleigh.

He'll curl around Chuck in his sleep, burrow into fur and safety, cuddling up and settling into a deep sleep his breathing is the most worrisome; it's raspy, rattling and sounds like death.

But he'll be okay, right?

Chuck may be terrified that Raleigh caught his death out in the snow and there's nothing he can do. Wolves he can fight, Kaiju he can kill, but illness?

Time and rest will tell. It will be a long winter, that's for sure.

The days pass and Raleigh only gets worse. Rough, wet coughing and dozens of hours of sleep. He fevers and nothing seems to break it.

Days turn into weeks and he only seems to decline, curling around Chuck and begging him not to go.

"Stay..I don't want to die alone."

"You're not going to die," Chuck snarls, holding him up and holding him as tightly as he can manage without hurting him.

He's done what he can, kept him fed and gone through all the medicines in the castle and Raleigh's no close to getting better. He's tried cheering Raleigh up, showed him the library and promised it to him.

"You can't die, think of all the books I have no use for." Chuck squeezes him gently. "Right?"

He wheezes a laugh.

"You could read them."

Raleigh had selected a few, brought them back to the room with him and when he feels well enough he sits up and reads until his eyes are tired and Chuck comes in and picks it up and closes it for him.

Chuck reads out loud for him, too, carefully turning pages with the tips of his claws.

They've gotten to know each other even better since the woods, and while Chuck wishes more of it could take place outside this room, he can't say he regrets any of it.

"But then who would I argue over them with?" He nudges Raleigh again. "You're going to be fine."

He hopes. He prays.

It's Raleigh's favorite when Chuck reads. He has a deep, gravely voice and an accent that sends shivers down Raleigh's spine that definitely don't have anything to do with sickness.

"Suppose you have a point."

He smiles and closes his eyes, reaching to brush his fingers over Chuck's arm.

"I'll be alright."

Chuck's time has an expiration--the more and more time he spends with Raleigh he wants to tell him, ask Raleigh if he could love him-

--but he can't. He thinks he can just manage to have this, whatever it is, even if it means his people are doomed.
Which fills him with guilt and shame but it's better that than drive Raleigh away again.

"You will." There's no argument in Chuck's voice.

He smiles faintly and reaches for Chuck, wanting to curl into his heat and doze in his lap.

Problem is, he's not fine. He's sick and dehydrated and dying.

He's not dying, Chuck refuses to let that happen.

He's willing to stand in his courtyard and shout for the witch who cursed him, to bring her back to save Raleigh's life in exchange for the rest of his if he has to.

Chuck curls around Raleigh, fitting him against him.

Chuck feels good. Raleigh curls up and rests his palm on hicks chest, listening to him breath.

There's whispers in the castle - will he make it through the night?

Of course he will.

Chuck stays up the night watching over Raleigh, listening to the rattle in his chest as he breathes.

Its questionable.

It's almost a death rattle. Raspy, gaping for air until he just stops.

No--

"Raleigh?" No no no

Chuck sits up, shaking Raleigh roughly with one hand. "Raleigh wake up." He wants it to be an order but he's pleading--no don't stop breathing don't leave--

He doesn't respond at first, but when Chuck shakes him he eventually groans in complaint, shifting with a long exhale.

"Tryna sleep.."

Chuck lets out a sigh of relief and pushes his forehead against Raleigh's--or, the top of his head against the top of Raleigh's head.

"Thought you'd gone," he mumbles, passing his paw over his cheek. "Scared me."

He makes a soft noise that might be a laugh, and reaches to touch what ought to pass for Chuck's cheek.

"No.." He murmurs, eyes sliding closed again. "Not quite."

He pushes into Raleigh's hand, nuzzling his face gently. Raleigh's so sick, so tired, he might not remember, and Chuck's exhausted from looking after and worrying about hime he can't quite manage to stop the affectionate gesture.

"Go back to sleep," he murmurs in a rumble, pulling the blanket more securely over Raleigh's shoulders.

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