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“Nova is unwell,” he barked.
“Your mate?”
“Why else would I be here? She suffers from a human affliction of something called fever.” Aleksandra’s gaze softened at his words. He forced himself to relax. “Perhaps you know what to do since it’s an old-world disease.”
“Oh, D’arn. If she’s ill, you’ve waited too long, and the Well no longer blesses her.”
“Don’t blame this on me.” His ire rose swiftly in his defense.
“Take me to her.”
Leaf strode through the Lodge hallways, heedless of eyes peeking through door cracks. He did not stop until he barged into his room. Aleksandra followed and immediately gasped.
“Why is it so hot in here?” White feathers rustled as she rushed to the window and opened it.
A blast of icy air bounced her ringlets.
“It’s freezing out there.” Leaf gestured brashly. “She is not like us.”
“Fool.” The word was for him, but her eyes were on the woman in the bed. “She has a fever. Heat will make it worse.”
“The cold has done this to her. It’s preposterous to think that it can fix her.”
“Stubborn mule, isn’t he?” Aleksandra spoke to Nova as though Leaf wasn’t standing there, looming over them.
Nova roused briefly and chuckled. “Jace is a typical man.”
Aleksandra’s eyes slid to Leaf. She raised her white eyebrows.
“She thinks I look like someone she knew,” he mumbled quickly, then shook his head. “And I want to speak to you about that. But first, she needs attention. Cold won’t be the solution if it is the cause.”
The Prime pressed her palm to Nova’s forehead, much like Leaf had done. Keen to prove he knewsomething, he said, “I already know she is hot to the touch. It’s how they tell if someone has a fever.”
“You knew to check for her temperature, yet kept the room like an oven?”
Her words squashed his pride. No one in the world could do that except her, and he couldn’t understand why she had this power over him. For all the expectations Aleksandra tossed at Leaf, she also gave him more wiggle room to do as he pleased. It stood to reason that he shouldn’t always feel so… inadequate around her.
But since Nova’s arrival, he had done that all on his own.
“A fever,” she explained, “is when the body’s inner temperature increases from an infection. If it gets too hot, she will die. Helping her body cool down will aid temperature regulation. Hopefully.”
Leaf folded his arms. “What would you have me do?”
“Run a cold bath.” Aleksandra’s brows puckered as she felt the damp night clothes. “And get her out of these wet clothes.”
“That’s it?”
“It will help. Administer more fluids and rest. Ah. The poor thing.” She maternally caressed Nova’s face. Leaf had never seen the Prime like this. Not only was she recalling ancient memories, but she was full of compassion. “If aspirin were a thing in this time, I’d find her some. The drug was derived from an herb, but I don’t recall which. Not many people knew. The local healer does have a vast library. She might be able to help.”
“She’s already provided tea. So… Nova will live?”
The stoic owl shifter tucked in her wings before meeting his eyes. “Almost certainly. A young, healthy woman usually outlasts the flu. Although… the germs in this time could be vastly different. And unforeseen complications are always a possibility. Without pure mana to harness—” She shot Leaf a reprehensible look. “We will have to wait and see. If you cool her temperature and her fever doesn’t break by morning, I’m unsure what else to do. Can you feel if she’s distressed through your mating bond?”
Leaf tensed. “I can’t tell anything in this state.”
“Hmm.”
“How cold should I run the bath?” He pushed past her to access the bathroom.
