Fandom: Harry Potter
Pairing: Percy/Oliver
Rating: PG 13
Summary: What are these two ill guys going to do on New Years?

Oliver Wood was wrapped in blankets on the couch when he heard the door bang shut. Peering into the kitchen, he saw Percy shrugging off his coat. "Hey babe." he called hoarsely.

Percy appeared in the doorframe. "Hey Ol. Feel better?"

"Do. I'b all stuffy ad achy. Hehtchuhh."

"Bless you. I'll put ond sombe tea and change, thend combe joind you."

"Did you rebeber to pick up tissues?"

"Yes. I received all four of your owls requesting tissues. You know, you dond't need to send Hermbes out in the cold that much. I wouldn't forget tissues." he chided gently, putting the teakettle on.  He took a fresh box of tissues to Oliver, then went to change out of his ministry robes. After putting on trousers and a sweatshirt, he finished the tea and carried the cups to the living room. "Extra hondey, just the way you like it."

"Thaks. How was work?"

"Londg. I kept thinking of you at hombe alonde. What did you do today?"

"Took a shower. Spedt the rest of the day sleepig, sdeezig, ad blowing by dose."

"Poor baby.   Handg ond." Percy pulled his handkerchief from his pocket and held it to his nose, panting slightly in anticipation. "Heh-heh-heh-heh choo, heychoo, eychoo, ehchoo, hehchushoo." He blew his nose and leaned back on the couch.

"Bless. Looks like I gave you by cold."

"Do." Percy started to protest before a coughing fit struck him.

Oliver waited until he was done, pushing the tea towards him. "You souded stuffy whed you cabe id, ad I thought I heard you coughing ad sdeezig this bordig."

"I told you I wouldn't forget tissues. I forgot to pick up cold bedicide though. Berlid, I wish I could take pepper-up."

"Because you've seed how buch it's helped be.  Heh-chuhh, uhchoo."

"Bless you. I'b id for a log week, aren't I?"

Oliver nodded. "Aye. So are we goig to ady of the Dew Year's parties tonight? I figure by family's out sidce Charlotte's got the dew baby ad the rugrats."

"Ad with Bariah due dext week, I dod't wadt to give this to Charlie. The last thig she deeds is to have to take care of hib ad the baby."

"Stay here?" Oliver asked, hopefully. "Hehchoo."

"Bless you. Souds good to be. Share the bladket?"

Oliver covered Percy with the blanket, and Percy leaned against him, picking up his handkerchief from the coffee table. "Uhsho o, huhshoo, aihhshoo, hishoo.  Dow that the cold bedicide is wearig off, the sdeezes are cobig back." He blew his nose loudly and snuggled up against Oliver.

"Try to rest." Oliver yawned.

"I ab tired." Percy blew his nose again and closed his eyes.

Several hours later, Percy awoke, still cuddled against Oliver's chest. It took a minute to figure out what had woken him, but another powerful sneeze from Oliver quickly answered that question.  "Huh-chushh, uh-chuhh."

"Bless you," Percy answered, his voice groggy and congested.

"Sorry. That's the first tibe I woke you. You slept well. You woke up a couple tibes sdeezig, but wedt right back to sleep."

"I odly rebeber wakig odce." Percy was distracted by his stomach growling. "I'b hugry. What tibe is it?"

Oliver looked at the clock. "Albost dide."

"I'b goig to heat up the soup I bade the other dight. Wadt sobe?"

"Why dod't you let be get it. You've beed taking care of be sidce I got sick. Bore tea?"

"Yes, please." Percy moved so Oliver could get off the couch, then wrapped back up in the blanket, warm from their body heat.

Oliver went into the small kitchen to heat up the soup and make a fresh pot of tea. The soup finished first, and Oliver brought two bowls out to the living room.  "I'll have the tea ready id a secod."

Percy nodded, grabbing up his handkerchief again. "Hah-ehshh, ehshoo, ushoo, hushoo." Oliver went and got the tea ready. When he returned, Percy was still firmly in the grips of his sneezing fit. "Huh-shuhh, uhhhshhh, kushoo."

Setting the tea down, Oliver sat next to him and gently rubbed his back. "Just sdeeze that tickle out, Perce." he told him gently since he knew that Percy would sneeze until the tickle was gone.

"Huh-kushoo, huh-uhshoo, uhshuushoo, hay-uckshoo, heh-empshiih." Percy rubbed his nose with the handkerchief and sniffled wetly.

"Bless you." Oliver said, placing a few tissues over Percy's nose. "Blow." After a moment's hesitation, Percy allowed Oliver to help him blow his nose a few times. "Odce bore." Oliver told him, replacing the used tissues with fresh ones. After the blow, Oliver

tenderly wiped his nose for him. "Better?"

"Yeah. But I could have blowd by owd dose."

"Sorry. Udcle reflex. Too buch tibe with Charlotte's rugrats. Hey-chuhh."

"Bless you." Percy cleared his throat and took a sip of tea.

"Eat sobethig, Perce, thed we'll crawl idto bed."

"Bed souds really good. I didn't realize how tired ad achy I was udtil I sat dowd."

"I dow. It was that way for be too. Eat." Oliver and Percy ate the soup quietly, although it tasted much better to Oliver than it did to Percy.

"Cad we go to bed dow?" Percy asked when they were done.

"Aye. Go put your pajamas od while I clead up."

Percy nodded, blowing his nose again and heading for the bedroom. He changed out of the trousers, slipping on a thick pair of sweatpants. Grabbing two extra pillows from the closet, he crawled under the covers.

Oliver came in a few minutes later, carrying two glasses of water and a box of tissues under each arm.  "Chadged?" Percy nodded. "I'b goig to take your teberature." Oliver walked over to the nightstand and pulled out a muggle thermometer. "I'b glad we bought

this thidg. Deither ode of us cad say the teberature spells right dow." He stuck the thermometer in Percy's ear. "38°C. Low grade fever." he told him, replacing the probe cover and taking his own. "Ad I'b albost dorbal."

"You, dorbal?"

"By temberature is. Ad I said albost. Uhshoo, huhchoo, uhchuh."

"Bless you. Get idto bed. I'b cold."

Oliver had stayed in pajamas all day, planning to change if he and Percy went out. Putting the thermometer back in the drawer, he crawled in bed next to Percy. "Rebeber whed we bought that thig?"

Percy nodded, smiling at the memory. He and Oliver had faced a row of thermometers, and the first one Percy had picked up was a rectal thermometer. 'They want us to stick it where?' he had asked Oliver, surprised at how muggles did things. After looking through the thermometers, they had decided on one that went in the ear. But they still remembered how they had laughed at the idea of taking your temperature by sticking the thermometer in your rear.

"Got everything you deed?" Oliver asked him.

"Yeah, water, tissues, idhalator." Percy slipped his glasses off and set them on the table. He took a tissue and blew his nose, lying against the pillows.  "Hah-schshh." Sitting up again, he hastily grabbed a few more tissues. "Hahschoo, ahschuhh, ahtschoo, uhschoo, huhehschoo. Ugh." He blew his nose again.  "Ollie, I dod't thik by dose is goig to let be go back to sleep." he whined. "I cad't believe I forgot cold bedicide. I wish Bariah could bake the potiod she usually bakes be."

"Id a few bore bonths she cad. Or you cad always ask Sdape, sidce he's fuckig your brother."

"Ugh. I dod't wadt to thik about that." He pressed the tissues to his nose again. "Huhchoo, huhchehh, huh-chishh, chushoo." He blew his nose loudly and flopped back on the pillows.

Oliver smiled at his lover's theatrics. "Bless ya. Do you wadt be to go out ad get you sobe?"

"Do," Percy said, petulantly. "I wadt you to stay id bed with be."

Oliver sighed. Percy never wanted to admit when he was sick, but once he did, he would occasionally act rather childish, especially on the first night. "Let be look id the bathroob ad see if there's anything that bight help." Oliver rubbed his nose with the back of his hand and got out of bed. A few minutes later, he returned with a bottle of cough syrup from the last cold Percy'd had. "I thik there's a full dose id her. It'll help sobe."

"Oliver, that's cough bedicide."

"It says it helps with a stuffy dose. See." He pointed to the label.

"Do, I dod't have by glasses od. Hehchoo, echoo, ehchushh. Excuse be."

"Take it. It cad't hurt."

"You should take sobe too. You've beed sick loger."

"Ad I'b getting better. You're sicker."

"We'll split it." Percy insisted.

Oliver sighed, knowing that Percy needed the medication far more than he did, but also knowing that Percy wouldn't take any until he did. Realizing that the label obscured most of the bottle and that Percy couldn't see that well without his glasses, he opened

the bottle and took a tiny sip, then handed the bottle to Percy. "Fidish it." he ordered, taking a drink of water. "There 's bore id there thad I thought." He lied, wrinkling his nose. "Hehchoo, ehhchuhh, uhhchushhh."

"Bless you." Percy finished the cough syrup and took a drink of water. "I hope it helps." he sniffled. "I hate this."

"I dow." Oliver slid back in next to Percy and gave his nose a firm honk with a tissue. "Just try to sleep, okay."

Percy nodded, reaching for another tissue. "I ab.  Ahschoo, hatschoo, ayahtschoo."

"Bless." Oliver waited for Percy to blow his nose and lay back down on his pillows before snuggling up next to him.

Sniffling, Percy closed his eyes. The weight of Oliver's body against his was familiar and comforting.  After about 15 minutes, he managed to fall asleep until an intense tickle in his nose woke him again.  "Heyeshh." The sneeze jerked his body forward, waking

Oliver. "Hehshoo, ehshoo, heyeshsoo. Sorry." He apologized to Oliver.

"'S'alright." Oliver mumbled, looking at the clock. "Elebed-fifty-dide." He grabbed a tissue and blew his nose. "Blow your dose, Perce."

"Why?" Percy asked, obliging him.

Oliver didn't say anything, just crawled up next to him and pressed his lips to Percy's for a deep, hungry kiss. "Happy Dew year, Percy." he said a minute later, pulling away from him.

"Happy Dew year." Percy yawned.

"I just wadted to ed ad begid the year by kissing you, udless you wadt to start it by shaggig?" he asked hopefully.

"Do. Dot tonight. I feel too lousy."

"Alright. I dod't blabe you; I didn't wadt to the other dight either. Go back to sleep."

Percy yawned. "I love you, Ollie." he mumbled sleepily.

"I love you, too, Perce." Oliver snuggled up to Percy's side, and they both nodded off again.

They wouldn't spend the night sleeping pressed together, of course, and they'd spend New Year's Day in bed together, snuggling and taking care of each other. And, Oliver thought, as he drifted off, maybe, if Percy felt up to it, they'd fool around a bit to celebrate the new year.