MLP: The Heart of the Song (Under Editing) Capper x Oc

Chapter Five: Sick Day

Over the weekend, as well as the weeks that followed, Shira was suckered into making her artwork for Capper, where she did her best to learn all about him. She started to form a tight bond with Capper as well as become good friends with him. She had even sang a few songs in the taverns and earned money from her singing performances on stage. But whenever she does her performances, Capper pickpocketed some of the locals who tried to flirt to her whenever she's either on and/or off the stage. Thanks to their combined teamwork, Capper was close enough for paying off his debt to Verko.
Shira could be seen painting a beautiful temple with overgrown greenery near the window with her art supplies. Capper was out in the marketplace and selling her recent paintings to the fascinated locals (who seemed like they haven't seen a descent painting before).
But as she continued painting, Shira's ears perked up when she suddenly heard a boom of thunder outside. She turned towards the window in surprise. Surely, that couldn't be a thunderstorm happening outside, she was in the middle of a desert for crying out loud. Shira's blue eyes stretched wide in surprise when she saw a huge wall of sand moving towards the city.
"Shoot," muttered Shira. But a realization had hit her like a swift bolt of lightning. Capper! He went outside to sell her paintings! He's going to get lost in that sandstorm!
There was a deafening boom as thunder shattered the sky and everything went dark. The sandstorm rammed into the city like a charging bull. Shira quickly grabbed her cloak and went downstairs, about to go outside when she heard a strong bang from the trapdoor. She recognized that sound anywhere! It was Capper!
Shira immediately unlocked the trapdoor and helped Capper get inside the windmill. "Capper! Are you okay?"
Capper leaned against a wall wheezing, clearly exhausted from all the waking and the terror caused by the sandstorm. Shira hoped that there wasn't anything seriously wrong with his lungs before quickly reminding herself that it was just from all the flying sand.
"I'm okay," said Capper hoarsely.
After a minute, Capper managed to laugh while Shira looked at him curiously. "What's so funny?"
"I look like I just dug my way out of a sand dune," replied Capper.
Shira eyed him playfully, mischief gleaming in her eyes. "You can say that again." Her dry tone caused Capper to let out another laugh. But her eyes shone with concern. "But are you okay though?"
"I'll be fine once I get some rest." Capper waved her concern off as he brushed off the sand from him.

What Capper had said was completely wrong. He's not alright from the sudden "sandstorm incident." The little cough Capper had developed after the sandstorm wasn't going away. If anything, it was getting worse. Capper was starting to complain about aching joints and an aching feeling in his chest. Shira was convinced she should take him to a doctor, just to be safe, but when she had suggested it, Capper had shut the idea down immediately. He claimed that most of the "doctors" in Klugetown were con artists selling miracle cures.
Today seemed to be particularly bad though. Capper was leaning against the left wooden wall, coughing uncontrollably. Shira was convinced something was wrong. From the time she had spent with Capper, she had observed that he was a fairly healthy person. He had mentioned once or twice that he didn't normally get sick, or really get sick at all. Shira walked over to him and placed her hand on his shoulder, the coughing hadn't stopped. It was then that she noticed how alarmingly warm he felt. She wasn't even toughing his fur directly.
That was the final straw. Shira couldn't make him see a doctor, she could at least find something to help him. "Capper, are you sure you should be standing? You're burning up."
"I'm..." Capper started coughing. "Fine, Shira..." He coughed again. "D-Don't you worry about me."
Shira was unconvinced and doubtful. "I'm going into town for a little while. I'm going to stick to the main roads, so I don't get lost. Please, do me a favor and lay down."
"You're worrying over..." Capper started coughing. "Nothing..." He coughed again. "I'm fine." He soon started to have another coughing fit.
"Are you really though? Please, just rest for a bit till I come back." Capper looked at Shira for a second before reluctantly walking to his bed. She watched him climb under the sheets before she left, just to be sure that he actually did it.
She took a deep breath before making her way into the market place. As she drew closer to the medicine stands, she realized that Capper was right, most of the "medicine" was an obvious scam. Stand after stand was just selling scam after scam. After an hour of searching, Shira leaned against a nearby wall, exhausted. She couldn't find a stand that could offer any sort of actual medicine, let alone tell her what was wrong with Capper.
Before she could dwell on it for much longer, she felt a light tap on her shoulder and followed by a concerned voice. "Hey, are you alright?"
Shira looked up to see who was talking to her and was surprised to see who was talking to her kindly. It was a Diamond Dog, straight from the Kingdom of Caninia. The Diamond Dog's fur is dark brown and tan with pointy dark brown ears, his amber eyes gleamed with concern and he was wearing a white boubou. "Are you alright?"
Shira let out a rough sigh. "I've had better days. So had my neighbor."
"What seems to be bothering you?" The Diamond Dog asked, sitting down beside her. "My name is Flame by the way."
"It's my neighbor, he's sick and he refuses to see a doctor," replied Shira warily.
"Understandable, most 'doctors' here are fakes." Flame gave the "healing" stalls a doubtful look before gazing back at Shira.
"I've noticed." Shira huffed. "I can't find anything to help him."
"Well, what are his symptoms?" asked Flame gently. 
Shira thought for a moment. "Well, he definitely has a fever. He's been having some pretty intense coughing fits. And he was complaining about aching in his joints and chest."
"I'm assuming that this friend of yours is around the same age as you are," commented Flame observantly. Shira nodded. "Were they out in that sandstorm a couple days ago?"
"I'm afraid so," confirmed Shira. "It took them by surprise."
"Well, I'm no expert, but that sounds an awful lot like valley fever," said Flame.
"Valley fever?" Shira repeated. "What's that?"
"It's a fungal infection in the lungs," Flame explained to her. "The fungus is usually found in the soil but when the soil is stirred into the air creatures can inhale it."
Shira felt slightly better now that she knew what Capper had, but she was still very concerned. "Is it serious?"
"No, not at all," Flame said to her soothingly. "Assuming your friend is usually healthy, he should be able to fight it off in a couple of weeks. You aren't in any danger of catching it either, it isn't contagious."
"Is it going to get any worse?" Shira asked. "It already seems pretty bad."
"He may get some additional symptoms like chills, fatigue and headaches," said Flame. "Maybe even some night sweats or a rash. But other than that it doesn't get much worse. Just have him take it easy for a while and he should be fine in a week or two."
Shira sighed with relief, Capper was going to be fine. "Thank you. I hate to ask, but is there anything I can give him just to help ease the symptoms? It's alright if you don't know, you've been a huge help already."
"There is actually." Flame smiled and pulled a bottle filled with some strange, greenish amberish liquid.
"What is that?" Shira asked, immediately cautious and suspicious.
"This is black seed oil," Flame replied. "It's actually quite the versatile little thing. You can rub it near the side of the face and on the forehead for head aches. Drinking a teaspoon of the stuff morning, noon, and night and rubbing it on the chest can help with coughing. It tastes a little bitter, so I recommend you give them something sweet after wards like juice."
"How do I know this isn't another one of these miracle cures?" Shira asked cautiously.
"I've took it and I'm still alive," countered Flame.
"I guess," Shira said warily.
"It's safe, as long as you take it in small doses," Flame said.
"Alright, I guess I'll give it a try," Shira said reluctantly. She fluffed up her fur, making herself look a little threatening. "But if he dies, I'm coming after you buster."
"I understand." Flame chuckled, handing Shira the bottle. "And you're welcome, young one."
Shira watched as the Diamond Dog weaved his way through the crowd. She looked down at the bottle of oil in her hands. She still had her doubts, but just a little couldn't hurt, right? If it actually helped it might be worth a shot. The trouble would be getting Capper to cooperate.
Capper was actually sleeping when Shira got back. He didn't even stir when she opened the door, so he was pretty much out. There was pretty much nothing separating Capper's bed from the rest of the house, so Shira was particularly aware of how loud her footsteps sounded. She sat down at the table, wincing the loud noise the chair made when she pulled it out. She wanted Capper to sleep for as long as possible, apparently the furniture didn't agree.
Shira set the bottle of black seed oil Flame had given them and stared at it. Flame seemed like a nice enough guy, not the type to poison people he didn't know. Still, looks can be deceiving. Shira was still debating whether or not they should actually give this to Capper. If she accidentally ended up poisoning Capper, she'd never forgive themself. A soft cough from Capper's direction helped her make a decision.
Shira could hear Capper shift in his bed as his coughs grew in volume. Shira assumed he had most likely coughed himself awake. She turned around to find Capper sitting up, blinking groggily.
"Shira? Didn't you say you were going out soon?" Capper mumbled blearily.
"I left almost two hours ago, I just got back," replied Shira.
"Really?...I must've slept." Capper coughed. "Off."
Shira took one last, cautious glance at the bottle. She soon found the measuring spoon in the kitchen drawer and returned to the table. She was somewhat relieved by how small it was, maybe this wasn't going to be as hard as she thought. She poured some of the oil into the spoon and carefully made her way to Capper's side.
"What in the name of Abyssinia is that?" Capper asked, raising an eyebrow in suspicion.
"It," Shira started. "Is something that is going to help you."
"I am not putting that..." Capper coughed. "Anywhere near my mouth."
Shira shook her head at his dramatics. "Calm down ya Scaredy Cat. The desert nomad who gave me this told me he use it too after sandstorms. He told me you've must of caught it yesterday when you were outside."
"You do know I'm not going anywhere near that thing, right?" snarked Capper.
"You can drink juice after you're done with the medicine," Shira said to him firmly.
Knowing he was still going to act childish, she pretended to look like she was argue again with Capper. By the time he had opened his mouth, Shira shoved the spoon in his mouth and removed her hand. Capper made a face and gagged at the bitter taste. Shira held the spoon there for a second to make sure he actually swallowed it. Capper spat out the spoon and glared at Shira.
"This is mutiny," Capper sulkily grumbled.
Shira smirked at him playfully. "Hey, at least it worked. You finally stopped coughing."
Capper settled back into his bed before shooting Shira one last glare. "Hate me all you want. I'm just trying to help you out here." Shira chuckled as she walked back to the table.
But for Capper, he woke up to see Shira walking towards the window seat and watching the sky with a peaceful smile. It had been almost a week since Capper had fallen ill, and although he hated to admit it the medicine was helping. He wasn't dead yet so it definitely was not poison. He had stopped fighting Shira about taking it as well. He was actually kind of impressed by how well she had put up with his sickness.
The thing was Capper knew he was sick, he just didn't want to admit it. He really hated being babied because he was so used to taking care of himself. He could usually handle what life threw at him, so it hurt his pride a little to need help from others. He felt guilty asking Shira for help, if he were alone in this situation he would just take care of himself. That being said he was grateful she was there.
The fact that Shira cared enough to stick around and hadn't robbed him blind in his vulnerable condition spoke volumes. She genuinely cared about his well being. He wasn't sure what to think about that. Shira had proven that she could be trusted and he did trust her, but there was still something about her that made him anxious. He was getting too close to her.
He couldn't afford to let her too close. Yes, she had promised that she would never hurt him, but so had Chummer. He didn't want her to get too close, but he didn't want to push her away either. He wanted to help her learn how to live independently, but he didn't want her to leave. Everything seemed to contradict itself. He was... confused.
Maybe it was the fever messing with his brain. That had to be it, the sickness was making him act weird. But deep down he knew that wasn't the case. Even when he wasn't sick these confusing feelings plagued his mind. Shira seemed to contradict everything, like she was an exception to all of his personal rules.
After a while, Capper found himself yawning and getting tired. Drowsiness started to take over and he laid down on the bed. In no time at all, he fell asleep.
Shira watched the steady rise and fall of Capper's chest. He had fallen asleep shortly after the medicine disagreement. And even though he was no longer awake, Shira had heard a lot less coughing since he'd taken the medicine. This gave her some hope that Flame really was just an innocent desert nomad guy. Shira hoped he was, she really didn't feel comfortable with the idea of tracking down a desert nomad.
Shira thought about the emotions she had experienced that day. It didn't take her long to realize that she had been extremely worried about Capper for most of the day. Even when she wasn't worrying, he was always in the back of their mind. Was it normal for a person to worry about someone that much? They were friends so it shouldn't be unusual, right? Friends worry about each other all the time.
Capper moaned softly and stirred in his sleep. Shira briefly wondered if he was having a nightmare, or at least some weird fever induced dream. She walked over to him and lightly rested her hand on his head, he was still burning up. She walked into the bathroom and grabbed a wash cloth out of a cabinet with the intention of soaking it in cold water. As she did so, something dawned on her, this wasn't the first time she had been so concerned about Capper.
She had been like this almost every time Capper had gotten really upset. She thought about it for a minute before shaking her head. She was just being a good friend that was all. She continued to soak the rag before walking back to Capper's side. She gently rested the cloth on his forehead. She couldn't seem to shake the feeling that friends didn't care about each other as much as she did. They were just friends, right?