Glass Slippers [1st Draft]

11. Cindered

Chapter Eleven:

Cindered

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James wasn't breathing. Clara's own breath stuttered to a stop as she stared at her little brother in horror, until suddenly, his chest heaved and he started to cough. A wave of relief washed over Clara as she held her brother in a sitting position as he spit up water.

"It's okay. Get it all out," she said, rubbing his back gently. The majority of her attention was on watching James, but the muffled sobs coming from her two younger sisters did not escape her notice.

Clara carefully put her arm under James' knees, and the other around his back, and despite the fact that she was not terribly strong, she lifted him up off the ground, doing her best to hold his shivering form close to her.

"Harriet, I need you to run up ahead, gather as many warm blankets as possible, and bring them down to the kitchen; we'll all be sleeping by the hearth tonight. The attic will be too cold for him." Harriet didn't need to be told twice, sprinting away to follow Clara's instructions, leaving Amelia to hurry alongside Clara's brisk pace.

Clara's arms were utterly exhausted by the time they reached the kitchen, but she didn't put James down until Harriet had arranged all of the blankets from their attic bedroom on the floor in a semi-comfortable nest shape.

"Is he gonna be okay?" Amelia whispered, once James was fast asleep next to the kitchen hearth. Clara didn't answer the question immediately.

"I hope so," she whispered back, before helping Amelia and Harriet lay down on the blankets. Eventually, after making sure all three of her siblings were situated, she laid down as well. She was already fast asleep when her stepfamily got home, and she didn't even stir when they made a ruckus.

-0-

The next morning Clara was woken up by coughing, loud coughing. She shot up from where she had been laying on the floor and turned to see James hunched over, hacking into his sleeve. Clara hurriedly got up and got him a glass of water, but it didn't seem to help, as he just continued to cough his barking cough.

"James, do you need anything?" James, still coughing, shook his head, instead going to take another sip of water. By then both Harriet and Amelia had woken up and were watching worriedly. After a few more sips of water, James' coughing died down enough for him to talk.

"My throat hurts," he said, his voice sounding ragged. Clara's brow creased as she put the back of her hand against his forehead, he felt a little too warm.

"Well, you feel a bit hot. Why don't we bundle you up? Maybe that will help," she suggested, and together with Harriet, she wrapped James up tightly. As soon as James was settled, she set to work getting breakfast ready, the last thing she wanted was an angry Linette on her plate as well as everything else.

Clara did her best to prepare everything quickly, not wanting to waste any time, but every time James coughed she felt her own chest tighten in sympathy. It might just be an after effect of the fall, the water was awfully cold. However, that didn't explain the fever.

Still lost in thought, she got her siblings their breakfast, before she carried up trays of food to the dining room where her step-family took their meals. Clara nudged the door open with her elbow, balancing the trays precariously on her hands. As soon as the door swung open, she placed the food onto the dining room, all but ignoring the chatter of her stepfamily.

"My word! What is that on your face?" Clara snapped out of her thoughts of James to stare at Edina.

"What do you mean?" She asked, earning a laugh from Edina.