Riot of The Stingers cold fan fic (M) - (14 Parts)

[Vetinari]

By this time his nostrils had turned from pink to a serious scarlet. Rapture could just imagine how sensitive and sore they were. He relented and blew his nose resulting in a very liquid like sound.

Ooooh Yum! A while since I've commented (sorry Prisma) but this is progressing beautifully. He's so grumpy too! It's fabulous. And the above part.......I'm just all mushy now.

[prisma]

Riot fumed inwardly. He hated not being in control. And just to illustrate this fact , as if his thoughts manifested physically, again his cough surfaced. Coughing harshly into his fist he tried to resist at first as it was torturous on his throat. Soon though It became more persistent and he just gave in. The pain he felt was searing and yet there was little he could to to stop it . His throat felt like it was having it's own volcanic eruption. When the coughs subsided he swallowed regrettably and winced.

Where was Minx with that tea? He lay there with his arms across his chest in a childlike huff . When he realized he * was* indeed fretting. He unfolded them conscious of what his, would be body language portrayed. He hadn't forgotten Minx's warning. How ever light it was. Nor had he neglected to remember the vow he had made for himself. He wanted to appear amiable and agreeable.

He waited. And then he waited some more. He found himself scowling as his patience was tried again. o. k. so this, was going to be harder then it seemed. He practised smiling in a gracious manor for when Minx would appear. He grew weary of the effort after a bit and just closed his eyes and rested his head on the pillow. In moments he was asleep.

Minx was in the Kitchen making Riot's tea and Rapture was keeping her company as the flirtatious Stinger puttered around in the unfamiliar kitchen

"So who was that on the phone." The Straight haired beauty asked.

"Oh just Jem" Rapture said in an offhanded manner her eyes downcast. She looked up expectantly for Minx's reaction

"Jem???!!"

"Yeah" Rapture continued." And you should have seen Riot's face. It was priceless!!"

Minx didn't like the way her friend seemed to delight in Riot's misery and told her so.

"Oh Minx! It's not my fault if Jem called and Riot couldn't talk to her. I cant help it if he lost his voice."

"We both need to make an effort to be nice. Ok?" Rapture shook her head and crossed her fingers behind her back " Ok!"

"What did the Pink haired twit want anyway?

"She didn't say. She just told me to tell Riot she called" Rapture was of course doing what she did best and that was lying! Jem had indeed mentioned why she called but she wasn't about to tell either of her band mates the truth. If Riot found out he would not be happy and the Stingers needed their strongest member to perform at the highly prestigious event. Something told her that Riot would not be so motivated to get well and attend the show if he knew the truth.

When the tea was ready the two women headed for their lead singers bedroom. They opened the door cautiously to find Riot asleep and soring ever so slightly. He looked so angelic. He was curled on his side clutching the comforter closely to himself his hair a mess of golden silk on the pillow. Although, only through his mouth due to blocked nasal passages, he was breathing easily and in a rhythmic fashion. He looked so peaceful. Minx was just about to suggest coming back shortly and leaving Riot to rest, when before it was too late to stop her, Rapture began to rudely shake Riot awake. "come'on now. it's time to get up." She cooed. Her voice was soft and melodic but did not match her actions at all as she jerked him from side to side. Riot groaned. He rubbed his eyes and looked at them still half asleep and confused.

"We brought you some tea" Rapture explained happily " With honey!"

She set it down next to the now empty bowl of soup. 'Huh' she remarked to herself 'So he did eat it after all'

Riot sat up awkwardly he still felt weak and it was hard to support himself with his arms.

"So how did you like the soup?" Rapture asked him knowing full well that he was under strict instructions to rest his voice. Riot just looked at her and cocked his head to one side as if to ask her 'Are you serious?'

"Hold on" Minx said and ran out of the room. She came back with a pen and a pad of paper which she promptly handed to Riot. He smiled at Minx in thanks, using the one he had been rehearsing before he fell asleep. He picked up the pen and began writing.

He turned it around to answer Raptures question. 'It was tolerable' He gave her an arrogant smirk, satisfied that he could still deliver a biting remark even without speaking then ruined the effect by sneezing. " Ah heh-----Highnxt!!"

"Bless you" Rapture said but somehow it came out sounding more like 'F-you'

Riot didn't seem to notice but Minx did. "May I see you in the kitchen please Rapture"

She said with supreme sugar. She turned to her ailing companion." I'll be right back Riot Dear" She turned on her heel and left leaving Rapture trailing after her.

"What now?" Rapture asked getting tired of Minx and her lectures on how to treat Riot. So what if he was sick? How did that give him the right to treat her like one of his pathetic followers? Maybe that stuff worked on weak willed people but she knew Riot too well to be at his beck and call like most. It would be different if he wasn't being such an a**hole about it.

" Just what do you think you doing?" Minx asked. Hands on hips she glared at Rapture.

"I'm afraid I don't know what you mean."

" Cut the act Rapture. You know exactly what I am talking about!"

"So what!" Rapture said her voice rising. "I'm through with being nice to Riot. I'm not a flunky and I'm not gonna be treated like one."

"You are acting like a spoiled little brat"

"Are you kidding me? If anyone is acting like a spoiled brat it's Riot not me!" Rapture paused. She looked at Minx intently. She couldn't understand why Minx would continue to let both her and Rapture be treated with such insignificance. Unless,,,, And then it dawned on her

"You're still in love with him aren't you?" Rapture said as she suddenly put two and two together.

"what? Ohmigod! Don't you get it Rapture?! Riot.,,,,,,Is.,,,,, Sick." She spelled it out slowly as if she were a child incapable of understanding the simple concept. She looked at her friends black expression. Minx knew she wasn't getting though. Sometimes she could be so immature. Rapture was so used to being in the spotlight that when it wasn't on her she grew insufferable. Her schemes and tricks were just a tactic to attract the attention she so craved. Most of the time it was funny but at times like this her tendency to act out was completely unwelcome " I thought you wanted to help him get better? That's why we came here" Minx saidin a softer tone. She felt disappointed and betrayed.

"That was before he started ordering me around like a dog"

"Fine!" Minx said . She felt her temper surge."Then I guess there is no reason to be here. Just go home Rapture. Go home and sulk liked the child you are!"

Rapture said nothing. She turned around and walked away,slamming the door with all her might as she left.

Great! Now Rapture was pissed. She wondered if she would even show up to the concert if Riot did get well.

Rapture had never done anything like that before so Minx was pretty positive that once she had some time to cool off things would be fine.

Now that the mystically inclined Stinger had gone home Minx felt somewhat more at ease. The two girls were great friends, that was a fact, but it was clear she was only hindering Riots progress in the health department. Speaking of which she went to check on her patient.

She found Riot laying in bed looking like death warmed over. The back of his wrist was draped dramatically across his forehead. His eyes were closed and he moaned slightly. Really he was the 'perfect' picture of misery.

"Rapture went home" Minx said breaking the silence. "I guess it's just you and me now. Do you want anything?"

Riot mimed pointing a gun to his head. Minx grinned at his extreme request.

"You don't want that do you? think of your fans. Why, it would be worse than Elvis" At this he smiled. He could never resist flattery. Minx was glad. What was that American expression again? 'Laughter was the better medicine?' Something like that anyway. And then to counteract the supposed progress a sudden chill ran through Riot and he shivered powerfully. He pulled the covers securely around him vibrating with the force of the chills "Have you had any of your tea yet?" Minx asked seeing his discomfort. He shook his head no. " You should try it before it goes cold" She picked it up from the bedside table and was about to give it to him, when he waved his hand to stop. She thought he was trying to decline her offer but it was just to delay it. She saw his eyelids flutter and snap shut. He took a few desperate gulps of breaths before ,,,,,, "AhehTIishchew!!" and as always again."HEHktikch!!!" Sneezing was murder on his headache. With Each sternutative inflection he felt his head pulsate and pound. He kept his eyes closed after the last and began to massage his temples. He picked up the paper and pen again and wrote 'Aspirin?' He showed Minx. "Of course" She complied. She was just leaving the room when she heard the inhale beginnings of a sneeze so loud it was almost comical. " Ah,,, Ah... Ahhhhh---Chew!!!" It sounded so cliche it seemed fake. She turned around "Bless you!" Riot rubbed his nose wearily and picked up the pad again to write 'Kleenex?' He looked pleadingly after her with teary eyes. "No problem. I'll be right back

[Vetinari]

Oh dear, still suffering? What a pity...

[prisma]

Minx left the room to retrieve the blond singers requested items. She had definitely come prepared. Earlier in the afternoon when she and Rapture had gone shopping it seemed as if they cleared out the whole pharmaceutical section. Admittedly it cost a fortune but who cares they were just going to charge it to Stinger Sound anyway.

She grabbed a bottle of Tylenol , popped off the top , shook a pair of pills into her dainty hand and set them aside on a paper towel. She, then went through the various grocery bags until she found the ones that contained the 10 boxes of Kleenex they purchased. Given the siege Riot's nose was under she was glad she had bought such an exaggerated amount.

Besides it wasn't on their dime. She knew that Riot had ways of fixing it so that it looked like they owed less then they did. With falsified records Eric Raymond was picking up the brunt of their tab. This tactic was used with everything from instruments to sound equipment to "business" lunches that cost hundreds. She remembered one time all three of them had gone out to the fanciest restaurant in town and ordered one of everything on the menu. The bill had come to almost $12000. They left most of the food behind of course. The point was it was just fun taking advantage of Eric. He was such a fool it was almost too easy!

She piled two tissue boxes on top of each other and balanced them in one hand. In her other she gathered up the pills and headed toward the direction in which much coughing was heard. It did not sound good. 'poor Riot' she thought. The fact that he felt terrible was obvious but Minx knew what was killing him the most was that he essentially was incapacitated. He was in a situation where he was completely powerless. And losing his voice well that was just icing on the rotten cake.

An image came to her mind of when she and Riot were dating. She recalled how once he sprained his ankle while ice skating He had so much pride that he insisted he was fine and had refused any help she tried to give him. He had limped all the way back to the apartment they shared. It was only when hours later when he physically could not walk more then 4 steps without screaming out in agony that he admitted something was wrong. Only then did he agree to go to the doctor and get checked out. But that wasn't the end of it. Oh no! He refused to keep his leg elevated and consistently tried to get up and test his manoeuvrability. He confessed how frustrated he felt over being immobilized and how that in itself was far worse then the extreme pain he was enduing at the time. She missed mothering him and caring for him and ........

Wait a sec! Why was she thinking about this now. Her and Riot had long since been over! Drat! Why did Rapture have to go and bring up painful memories....she was not still in love with Riot. She wasn't. They were friends and band mates and that was it!!! It was! Really!

Who was she kidding. When they had parted ways her heart broke in places she didn't know existed. She was so devastated. It had got so bad that she even considered quitting The Stingers. It was one of the hardest choices she had ever contemplated. But in the end she realized she was just being selfish. The group was a whole and it wouldn't have been fair to the others. It was then she kicked her infallible persona into high gear. She decided if she couldn't have Riot then she would just have ...well everyone else! Of course she wasn't trying to make Riot jealous! Not at all! well..........not much anyway. OK fine! She was and if she couldn't make him jealous well then "Lil Miss Pink b**ch" would do just fine. She was after all the lady of Riot's affections so pissing her off would be just as satisfying. And that was why she threw herself at Rio at every opportunity. Of course Riot had no idea that she still carried a torch for him and that was just fine as far as Minx was concerned.. She planned to keep it that way. No one knew so the fact that Rapture had suspected something really made her wonder if her friends supposed phychic abilities were just as act

Minx had never understood why they had broken up in the first place . They had so much in common. Riot's motives and determination mirrored her own. When she had first laid eyes on him she decided he was the most magnificent man she had ever seen. It was lust at first sight. And it was only after she had gotten to know him that her desire turned to actual love. When he started to pursue her she felt as if her heart would burst from happiness.During their relationship she had felt the best she had ever felt in her whole life. When the band began to soar with popularity Riot called it off. He told her they were too similar and that it would look better to the masses if they both appeared single. Of course he stated a slew of other excuses. But he had made up his mind and no matter what Minx had said there was no convincing him otherwise.

Suddenly she felt the familiar sting of hot tears down her cheeks. The pain she had tried to put behind her was all coming back. She turned around and went the other way down the hall back to the kitchen. She set down the pills and ripped open the box of Kleenex. She dried her eyes, dabbed at her nose and gave a shaky sigh. She squared her shoulders and gained her composure then she gathered the items up again and went back to Riot.

She knocked on the door out of respect and to announce her presence. She did not expect Riot to answer. After a moment she walked in.

"Here you go" she said as she handed Riot the Tissues. She set the pills next to the tea. She placed her hand on the mug to test it's temperature and found it warm but not hot. It wasn't cold yet. Riot mouthed 'Thank you'. He tugged on a piece of Kleenex turned away slightly abashed and blew his nose and then tossed it into the waste paper basket by his bed. He sniffed a few times and turned back toward Minx who was sniffling slightly herself.

Riot eyed her with concern. He handed her the pad.' I hope your not coming down with my cold' It said. She couldn't tell if he was actually concerned for her health or if it was the fact that if she did fall ill she wouldn't be able to continue her care for him. "Oh, I'm fine" Minx blushed. She hoped he couldn't tell she had just been crying." Don't worry about me. Thank you though." She set the pad down and picked up the pills and dropped them into Riot's outstretched hand. He swallowed them back with the tea.

It was sweet with honey and just a bit tart from the lemon and quite honestly the best tea her could ever remember having. It did just the trick and seemed to soothe his aching throat instantly. He turned to Minx and smiled.

"You're welcome." Minx said responding to his silent thanks. They sat there is the comfortable silence that comes rich with history and coated with understanding and ease.

Sitting there enjoying each others company they were both lost in one another's thoughts. Riot sipped at his tea as Minx sat on the bed demurely, her legs tucked beneath her.

"Maybe this is good time to mention I plan on staying the night" Minx stated and then realizing how forward that sounded regretted it as soon as the words left her mouth. She tried to recover by adding " Rapture was going to stay over too but ,,,well she left."

Riot seemed amused by this.

"Do you really think I need a baby sitter?" He asked in a hoarse whisper forgetting to use his pen and pad.

"No. But obviously someone has to be here to remind you to keep resting your voice"

She said deliberately handed him back the pen with paper. He took it with a melodramatic sigh and wrote: ' Yes, Doctor.'

Minx looked at the time it was 9pm. "I think it's time we both get some rest It's been a long day."

Riot thought back over the events of that morning. In his mind it appeared so far away. It seemed almost impossible that less then 12 hours ago he was actually attending a business meeting at Stinger Sound. And now here he was laid up in bed with a miserable cold unable to go anywhere. Getting sleep was a good idea. He desperately wanted to get well. He needed to play that show. If it weren't for Jem he would have cancelled by now. But she was the sole motivating factor in his recovery.

"If you need anything at all Riot , I'm in the guest suite". Minx picked up the empty bowl and mug with plans to wash them before she retired to bed. "Sweet dreams." she called out softly as she closed the door gently behind her.

She deposited the dishes in the sink and resolved to wash them in the morning.

Then she went to her room, changed out of her "uniform" and into an old over sized Stingers t- shirt. She climbed into bed ,her head hit the pillow and soon after she was in the land of nod.

Riot unfortunately wasn't so lucky. He closed his eyes and tried to relax. He couldn't breathe. He sniffled a few times to try to clear the unending congestion and finally gave up and blew his nose. It helped little. It seemed to just plug up his sinus even more. His headache was returning as the medication wore off. Or maybe it never left in the first place.

God he felt dreadful! At least Minx and Rapture were a distraction but now left all alone it seemed he felt his symptoms even more so. He felt his nose began to run and to exhausted to reach for the tissues he wiped it on the sleeve of his $5000 custom made Yaki Tori Pyjamas. Oh this was a new low.

He didn't even care anymore. He sneezed and then he coughed and then he sneezed again and again and yet again. Each one sounding more pitiful then the last.He prayed for sleep just to have a temporary relief from all this misery! And at last when he felt he could bare it no longer he fell into a fitful slumber.

The next thing Riot knew he was being shaken awake. Only this time it wasn't by Rapture it was by Minx.

"Riot" she said with urgency " You've got to get up, the concert is in one hour!"

One hour??

"But today's only Wednesday. The concert isn't until this weekend." He protested. Woah! Hold on a sec!! He could talk!??!His laryngitis was gone!

" You were kind out of it for awhile.You've been delirious with fever for the last day or so .It finally broke last night thank god. I was so worried about you!"

Riot had absolutely no recollection of anything. How odd.

At least he was feeling better. A little woozy but no worse for the wear.

Wow! Was he glad to be better.

Suddenly they were at the concert. How,,,,,,,,in the world,,,,? Maybe he was more unsteady then he thought. I mean he was still recovering, right?.

He was backstage in the dressing area when he looked down and realized he was still wearing his pyjamas. He went to look for his costume to change but the next thing he knew he was being pushed on stage. He walked on and looked around. He was alone. Where were Rapture and Minx? This was getting stranger all the time.

He could hear the crowd faintly caling his name

"Riot" "Riot" "Riot"

It became louder : "Riot!" "Riot!" "Riot!"

and then louder still..."RIOT!" "RIOT!" "RIOT!"

From somewhere off stage music started and he heard the opening cords of "Let me be"

He got ready to serenade the audience but when he opened his mouth nothing came out.

Until,,,,,,,, "AhhSHeew!!" "Hehchooo!!" "Ahh...hehhh Kchooo!!!!!" Oh no! Not here! Not now! "HHehUpChooo!!!" The tickle was maddening. "Heehhh,,,,,, HHaaahhh" He tried to hold them back but it was no use they were far too strong. "Heekahtchoo!!!, HehhhIIIshOO!!!, Hahchow!!, Heiii...HHeehhiiiii....IiiTISHOOooo....." and it just went on and on. He tried to pinch his nose shut. That was no help. He tried to run off stage but he was frozen to the spot. And he just kept right on sneezing. His nose showed no signs of stopping. In between feeling the need to sneeze , sneezing and getting ready to sneeze again he heard laughing. The crowd was laughing....AT HIM!!!!! He heard them chuckling and guffawing, giggling and snickering. And through eyes now watery he saw they were pointing as well!!

He wanted to yell at them to stop but he was sneezing far too much to utter a word..

Ohhhhh what a nightmare! And then he saw Jem. She appeared on stage and in the middle of this horrendous sneezing fit she started singing to him "This must be a night mare!" And all at once the holograms were there and joined in " Nightmare , nightmare" They chanted in unison.

It was only when Jem started laughing at him that Riot suddenly awoke. He found himself tangled, the sheets holding him hostage. He wrestled free. His heart was beating fast , he was covered in a cold sweat and as if reality was mocking him to his absolute horror he sneezed.

The sound was boisterous and crude against the silence and it echoed off the walls of Riot's over sized master bedroom.

Riot sat motionless in the darkness. His breathing still laboured, he closed his eyes. His ears rang with a high pitched intensity that only comes paired with a nasty fever.

His head felt like it was stuffed with a million pounds of feathers. Which was the only analogy he could come up with as he was oddly lightheaded and yet at the same time felt like his head was filled with thick cement.

And the worst the absolute worst was that he was now,,,,,,,,,,,,,, AWAKE! He didn't remember falling asleep but he did remember what it was like trying. Not fun! l He lay back down and tried his very best to get back to bed. Miraculously this time he had no trouble.

Minx was awakend by the bright sun streaming though the window by her bed. She had slept soundly and woke up feeling rejuvenated, refreshed and ravenous. The last time she had sat down to eat was when Rapture and her had discussed their plan of attack for Riot over lunch. She got up and stretched. Then she headed for the kitchen. She opened the fridge and found nothing. The cupboards were no better. There was still Rapture's soup on the stove. Who ever heard of soup for breakfast? Oh well it would have to do. After all beggar's cant be choosers. She warmed it up in the microwave. When it was done she took it out and poured it in a bowl. It smelled totally Delicious and tasted even better. When she finished she washed that bowl and the other items from last night. She remarked to herself that if she was going to stay for the next couple of days she was going to have to go shopping to fill Riot's completely sparse pantry.

She wondered how he was doing and walked by his door. She was startled to hear him snoring loudly. Up until now she had never heard Riot snore 'God! He must have it bad' she thought to herself. Knowing he wouldn't be up for awhile she went into the living room and turned on the TV. This time she made sure the volume was very low. She stretched out on the luxurious white leather couch. It's surface felt cold and smooth against her bare legs and she propped them up on the buttery soft fabric. She began idly flipping through TV stations, not really caring what she watched. It seemed there was nothing on.and Minx soon grew bored. she stood up and turned off the television. She went to the bookshelf. and looked through some of the titles: 50 prefect pasta dishes, sex and the perfect lover, The prefect choice, Be a perfect person in just three days, Perfect harmony,Teach your horse perfect manors ' .what? Riot doesn't even own a horse.'., The perfect drink for every occasion, Dead perfect,The perfect witness, The perfect potato: 100 fabulous recipes,Dinner with a perfect stranger, practise makes perfect,. and the list just went on and on. It was all she could do not to laugh. Sometimes Riot seemed so ridiculous it was unreal. She was sure that he had no idea how funny he really was and she was certain if she tried to tell him he wouldn't appreciate it one bit. It wasn't a bad thing really. But she knew he wouldn't see it that way. Riot took himself very seriously.

Minx decided on a mystery book called " The prefect crime" and settled back down on the couch. It wasn't too often that she had the time to just sit back and read and by the time she was into the 3rd chapter she found she was really enjoying herself. She scarcely noticed when it was already the afternoon. She closed her book and went to check on Riot. She figured he would be up by now but when she entered his bedroom all she found was a mass of blond curls atop his pillow. The rest of Riot was hidden somewhere deep inside a labyrinth of blankets and sheets. She tiptoed quietly out of the room not wishing to disturb him.

She went back to her room and got dressed. She put on a pair of extremely form fitting black pants. And a yellow tight fitting off the shoulder blouse that was tapered at the waist. Lastly her outfit just wouldn't be complete without her wide brim hat , indicative of some 40's film star. She set it on her head and stood back to admire the effect in the full length mirror. Ahh, she looked stunning. ' Well obviously.' Minx thought to herself.

The coughing she heard next was a signal that Riot was indeed awake. She went to his room and opened the door. Riot was sitting up in bed and coughing harshly into his fist. Minx sat beside him and began to gently rub his back. She remembered as a young girl back in Germany her mother used to do this when she had a bad cough and whether it actually helped or just felt soothing she didn't know but she thought of it fondly just the same.

Riot's coughs promptly stopped to both their relief.

"I was going to ask how you were feeling but I think you just answered my question" Minx said trying to swallow her concern and be lighthearted. She looked at Riot and tried to gauge his reaction. His eyes looked dull. He was clearly not amused but he didn't seem angry either. He just seemed tired, downcast and well,,,,,,,,sick. She found the pad and pen before she asked her next question. She wanted to encourage Riot to keep his talking to a bare minimum. "Did you sleep well at least?" Riot shook his head wearily and wrote " Nightmares" on the sheet of paper. "I'm sorry" Minx said, though it was clearly not her fault.

Riot just sniffled quietly. An aura of gloom seemed to hang about his head. He was so forlorn. Minx's heart broke just looking at him. She picked up the box of Kleenex that was now on the floor by his bed and handed him a sheet. He took it and dabbed at his nose lightly. It was far too sore and he shuddered at the thought of actually blowing it. "I don't know about you but I'm starving. I'm going to go to the store to get some food. Is there anything you want while I am there?". Riot shook his head mournfully and crawled back into his blankets. He rolled on his side his back facing her. Minx stood there a moment feeling shunned. She turned with intent to leave but felt a slight hesitation. She turned back around " I'll be back soon" and said more to herself then to Riot. She left heavyhearted. It seemed there was nothing she could do to make Riot feel better.

Minx went shopping . Riot slept.

When Minx arrived back at Riot's she was absolutely famished. She opened one of the boxes of granola bars to eat as a snack as she put away the groceries. it was around 4pm at this point. She was about to start an early dinner but before she did she began making some tea for Riot. She figured he hadn't had anything to eat all day so she made some toast as well. She brought both things ( and a surprise) to Riots room on a tray she had found while putting stuff away. The lights were off. " Riot " She sang out " I've brought you some tea!" She set the tray down and turned on the lights. Riot's hand immediately rose to his face to shield his eyes from the light. He glared at Minx through splayed fingers." Sorry , did you want the lights off?" Minx quickly enquired. Riot said nothing. Minx turned off the lights. "I brought you some toast as well" she said in a softer tone." And a surprise!" She picked up the bell she had bought and shook it ever so slightly. It gave a quint tinkling sound. She thought Riot would be delighted but instead he just turned away again with his back facing her. "Go away." Riot's whisper was harsh "I just want to be left alone" Minx was completely taken aback. Here she thought she was doing something nice he would appreciate but instead he was making it clear that he obviously didn't care

"Riot" Her voice was empathetic " You need to eat something."

At this Riot sat up abruptly.He stared at Minx with an annoyance he didn't care to hide. He grabbed the writing pad off his night table. He furiously scribbled his message out. He wrote it so fast and with such haste Minx could barley make out that it said 'I'm not hungry" when it was handed back to her.

"Well at least have some tea" She urged.

Riot looked at her flabbergasted. With pure exasperation, he snatched up the pad of paper once more. He wrote each word on a separate sheet ,showing them to Minx in succession. Lost in his rage he made a great flourish of ripping of each page loudly and thrusting them in her face with hostility. One by one.

The angry capital letters spelled out:

LEAVE.

ME

ALONE!

It took a moment to let Riot's harsh actions sink in

Minx decided then and there she had had just about enough of this. Maybe Rapture was right after all! Of course Riot was sick but that was no reason to act like THIS! She had fully gone out of her way for him. There was no excuse for this kind of behaviour. Her first feelings were furious but when she realized the full scale of his coarseness she suddenly felt overwhelmingly sad. She decided to stay with that emotion. After all being angry at someone rarely got you anywhere. Minx knew what tears did to men. She knew all the tricks to get the opposite sex to do things for her. She could manipulate the best of them. Including Riot. He didn't respond to anger and his often cold exterior rarely responded to waterworks but Minx knew just exactly how far to go to get the desired reaction from the blond singer.

She looked at him forlornly her eyes transforming to liquid sorrow "I'm sorry Riot" She said her speech quivering. " I didn't mean to make you angry. I just wanted to make you feel better. And now I've ruined everything. I've upset you and that was the last thing I wanted,,,, I ,,Just ,,,,want ,,,you to be,,,,,happy. " Her voice faltered as the hot tears raced down her cheeks. She hardly had to pretend either. She had been an emotional basket case since her blow up with Rapture.

Riot sighed. He looked at Minx trying now to hold back her tears but failing horribly and his

heart softened. He motioned for her to come near and he embraced he.r He stroked her hair . He could hear raiment's of weak sobs still inside her. Minx pressed up against him remembering the comfort of his his strong body. She pulled away with much reluctance. Riot sneezed suddenly then and it seemed startling in the mist of their silent heart to heart. He reached over to the now familiar box and took a tissue for himself and when he saw that Minx was sniffling profusely, he handed one to her as well. Humorously they blew their nose symultaniously

" I know you not hungry but you've got to eat something to keep your strength up" Minx said sensibly. She handed Riot the plate with the toast. He took the plate and looked down at it doubtfully. Then he looked at Minx.

"What?" Minx said ready for his protests. Riot cleared his throat. "Couldn't you think of anything more appetizing?

"when your sick you eat toast. It's *supposed* to have nothing on it"

Riot was going to speak again but thought better of it and took the pad to write : ' What about soup?'

The look on her face had guilt written all over it. She grimaced " I ate it." Again she apologized " I'm sorry. I was just so hungry this morning and you had nothing to eat. I could try making you some but I don't think it will be as good as Rapture's"

Riot picked up the toast, stuck it in his mouth and began to chew. It was like cardboard. Tasteless and bland. He swallowed with effort. He saw Minx watching intently. He gave her an unconvincing smile. Then he took the paper and wrote: " MMMMMM"

Minx laughed. "Remember your not just eating this for my sake. It's for yours too. Just think of when your well enough to see Jem at the concert. You can woo her with tales of how you overcame this terrible illness just so you could come and play her benefit. She'll love it." Jealousy aside Minx wanted Riot to recover in time and she knew humouring his obsession for Jem could only do good

Riot remembered the night when he first found out his mother was in the hospital and how his vulnerability seemed to work as an intoxicant on Jem. 'Hmmm' Riot thought to himself He could just imagine the sympathy he was sure to get from Jem when he told her all about how sick he was and how he had braved this terrible virus just for her. Thinking about the imminent kindness his beloved would lavish him with almost made this horrendous experience bearable. He smiled to himself. Minx interrupted his fantastic fantasy "I'm going to get something to eat myself. When I get back I hope to find your plate and cup empty" She finished off tentatively. She didn't want to push him as she knew how unpredictable his emotions were at this time.

Minx went back into the Kitchen and went to work on whipping up a meal that was both fast and filling

Minx was just finishing off her dish of spaghetti and meat balls when she heard the jingling of a bell. Her eyes lit up at the prospect of Riot calling on her for help. Then she got scared. 'What happens if there was something seriously wrong? What if he was choking? What if he was bleeding? what if,,,,,' Her mind raced with all sorts of terrible things. " I'm coming Riot" She called. She burst through the door ready to be met with Riot's unfortunate demise.

Riot was sitting in bed smug smile in place and eyes dancing with amusement.

He picked up his ever faithful writing equipment. He wrote something and turned it round so Minx could see:

'It worked'

Minx grinned in site of herself.

" Is there anything you actually wanted?" Minx teased " I mean other then to see if I would be at your beck and call"

Riot nodded. He took to his pen and paper once more.

'Will you keep me company and watch T.V. with me?'

He looked up at her hopefully.

Minx was completely moved . It was such a simple and yet such a touching request "Oh Riot of course" Given the way he had been acting she wondered how long this nice streak would last

She got up on the bed and leaned back in a sitting position again the fluffy pillows.

Riot's bed was the same size as his ego. So it goes without saying that it was massive. Minx's lithe body fit comfortably next to Riot. With more then enough room to spare on the bed she wondered if she was too close but Riot didn't seem to mind.

They both decided on a TV Movie that was just starting. They tried watching it but every time something funny happened ,Riot laughed and it turned into a coughing fit. The frequency of his sneezing didn't help either.

"HIIIiiiiETCHeooo!"

"Bless you"

"Hatch-CHEW!"

"Bless you"

"Ehh.Eh .Eshoeow!"

"Bless you!"

"Hitch-Choo.snob blessing be.J-Ju.Uhtcho!. Just wait *sniff* till I'b done" Riot sneezed twice more and sighed clearly irritated. " Ok" He said weakly "Dock yourself owd"

He felt drained and with no energy to sit up any longer he flopped back against the pillows.

"what?" Minx asked. Since Riot wasn't talking that much it was hard to get used to understanding him through his congestion.

Riot was about to repeat himself when he realized he could just write down what he wanted to say.

" Bless you, Riot " Minx said tenderly when she saw his note. She handed him a tissue from the almost empty box. Riot took it and looked at it defiantly as if he was about to go to battle. He gave in finally and blew his nose. "Ow" He whimpered.

"Awwww" Minx cooed

"I'm sorry I'm such lousy company right now" Riot looked sincere

"Hush" Mind admonished. " Your absolutely perfect company"

Riot would have said thank you but another coughing fit abruptly came about him.

The coughs sounded deeper and more serious then before. Minx tried rubbing his back again but the coughs would not stop this time. Minx felt more helpless then ever as she witnessed Riot try to gain control over this frightening coughing spell. It seemed like it lasted for ever and when it finally stopped. Riot was left panting and desperate for breath.

Although he had been consistently sucking on throat lozenges they gave little relief. In fact, if anything his cough had worsened.

"I dont like the sound of that" Minx said worried.

Still trying to catch his breath Riot wrote ' I'll be fine' on a piece of paper. He stifled a few more coughs and tried to reassure his German bandmate. "Really" He said "I'm ok"

"Well I have something that may help" Minx left the room and went to the kitchen where the stash of "sick stuff" ,as she deemed it, was being kept. She chose some Vick's vapour rub and hurried back to Riots side.

Minx asked him to undo his robe and unbutton his shirt and fought back a blush at the sight of his well muscled chest. She took a seat beside him and opened the jar. She scooped out a thick blob of the ointment with her fingertips and began massaging it into onto Riot's throat and upper body. "Take some deep breaths. That way you can inhale the vapours directly into your nose too. That's supposed to help with congestion" Minx said while reading the instructions on the back of the jar.

"I don't thing thad will helb. I can'd sbell adythig" Riot complained

"Well it cant hurt"

Riot tried to breathe in deeply but found it was impossible. It only made him feel like coughing again.

" Did you want to watch some more T.V.?"

" I think I just want to rest now" Riot said. He was making a considerable effort to be nice. He realized after making Minx cry just how insensitive he was being. Still he had warned her he wasn't a good patient. Or at least he said he wasnt good at being sick. Which in his mind was the same thing. When he was left alone he could be as miserable as he wanted and not have to worry about hurting anyones' feelings

Minx agreed it would be a good idea to get more rest as it was his body's way of telling him to take it easy so it could shut down and heal.

She told Riot that if he needed anything all he had to do was ring the bell. Riot thanked her and in a rare moment of mush he explained how he really appreciated all she was doing for him.

Minx smiled and flirtatiously said " Of course you do Riot darling" She winked and left the room.

Riot was left alone. The silence of the room was comfort and he was thankful for the solidarity. He loathed being in such a position of weakness. Even in front of his own band members. He worked hard at making sure his essence of perfection was intact at all times. It wasn't easy. He had to watch how he looked ,what he said , what he did , what he wore. And along comes this *stupid* microbe to inflict all sorts of nasties on him! This minuscule microscopic bug , invisible to the human eye had the absolute gall to take up residence inside him. And he could do nothing about it. He despised how it reduced him to such a sniffling pathetic fool. His muscles still ached and his nose was the epitome of a leaky faucet. Swallowing was excruciating. His throat felt like it was encased in blistering flames. 'Was there no end to this torture?' He thought dismally to himself.

"HEHCHEW!" He sneezed violently. "GAH! Stop it!" He commanded his nose. And for the time being thankfully it seemed to listen. Even though he had spent the whole day in bed he felt overwhelmingly exhausted. He rubbed his eyes and closed them. It was getting harder to stay awake. With the way he felt now he was sure he would have no trouble falling asleep.

It was the sound of the bell the woke Minx up. She sat up in bed expecting to see the sun but when she opened her eyes the room was shrouded in darkness. She emerged from the guest suite confused and hazy as one often does when being awoken in the middle of the night. Her eyes were bleary slits as she made it down the hall to Riots room. Her hands darting in front of her in preparation for some unexpected collision with a foreign object.

She opened the door ready to play Riot's game of beck and call girl. She honestly wasn't expecting to find anything seriously wrong with him. So it came as a shock to her when she found Riot in bed, weakly calling her name. A sheen of sweat had formed on his forehead and his clothes were soaked in perspiration.

"Riot your drenched!" Minx exclaimed. She placed her the back of her hand on his cheek. His was obviously feverish and she could feel the heat radiating off him like a furnace.

"I don't feel well" He complained his voice was a frightening whine. The pitch was just enough to indicate that he himself was worried.

"we need to get you out of these ." She said indicating his clothes

"But I'm cold." he protested in a quiet voice.It was not at full strength yet and Minx could just barley make out what he said.

"Your cold because your clothes are wet. I'm going to find you another pair of pyjamas". She went though a few drawers before she finally found some. She helped Riot sit up and change his shirt. She pulled his pants off from the ankles and then placed each leg into the separate slot in the bottoms and Minx pulled them up. At this point he was far to delirious with fever to even care or notice his complete helplessness. Minx then went to the kitchen to grab a glass of water. She took the bottle of Tylenol on the bed side table and dolled out two white capsules.

"Riot honey you need to take these"

"Hurts" He rubbed his throat.

"I know it hurts but you've got to take them." She felt guilty enough for not monitoring his fever properly in the first place and she was going to make sure to take extreme care with it now. He took one pill from her and stuck it on his tongue. Minx handed him the water and he swallowed. He winched at the searing pain as the pill travelled down his throat. He followed suit with the second pill. He made a face and Minx could see how much he was suffering. Minx got up again and took the cloth and the bowl of water that both she and rapture had used to soothe his fever the previous day. She went to the bathroom and filled it with tepid water. She found Riot trembling with chills when she returned. She gently placed the cloth over his forehead. She heard Riot audibly such in air as the cool water met with his heated brow. "It's too cold. It feels like ice"

"Its not that cold. It just feels like that. Hun your body temperature is probably through the roof right now. We need to bring down that fever of yours."

Riot said nothing and Minx was grateful for his compliance

Minx didn't leave Riot's side that night and continued to pat him down with water when he was too hot. Or bundle him with blankets if he got to cold.

And although in the past years Minx would have killed to spend another night in Riots bed this wasn't exactly what she had pictured. Somehow though she didn't mind

[prisma]

Ok Before you read this this is some female sneezing at the end So I am mentioning it for those of you who care either way.

This is the LAST PART

Its DONE

I love everyone who gave me a comment . Thank you so much

For those of you still reading your amazing!!!!

LAST PART!!!!!!!!!!

Minx did not get a wink of sleep that whole night. She made sure to keep awake even when Riot slept fitfully. In the early hours of morning she found it was impossible to stay conscious any longer and she drifted off in a deep sleep.

Riot awoke to a completely adorable Minx. She was sleeping peacefully in a fetal position on top of the covers. Riot couldn't help remarking to himself how it reminded him of their early days on tour, when travelling by train made sleeping comfortably a luxury. He stretched like a big cat and yawned. It dawned on him suddenly that he was starving. Without thinking twice he got out of bed and made it over to the kitchen. He remembered Minx said she was going shopping and looked in the fridge for the proof. Sure enough it was loaded with food. Now although Riot was a snob about having gourmet chefs come to prepare his food that didn't mean that he couldn't cook. ' I mean really there was there anything he couldn't do?' The thought made him chuckle. ' Of course not' He answered himself internally. In fact he made an omelet so great he bet half the chefs he employed would beg him for the recipe. He searched for the eggs and some vegetables. and got out the frying pan.

With all these preparations and with the initial hunger that pulled him out of bed in the first place, he hardly noticed that his muscle aches were practically gone. Or that when he stood he didn't feel dizzy and he could for the first time in days breathe through his nose. He was concentrating too hard on creating a feast for him and Minx. About an hour later the table was set and breakfast of gigantic proportions was awaiting both the singers. Riot was about to wake Minx up so that they could both eat when she hurriedly came into the Kitchen.

"I heard a noise and ,,,,,,,,,,," Her voice trailed off as she saw the fantastic spread of food on the table. " What is this?"

" I was hungry and I decided to make us some breakfast" Riot announced proudly.

"Riot your sick. What are you doing out of bed?." She asked failing to notice his voice was back to normal. She reached up to feel Riots forehead. " Your fevers gone!" She said amazed. She stared at him in a quandary. His eyes were bright and clear. He looked completely refreshed and rejuvenated. If it wasn't for the stubble on his chin, and a slightly pink nose he looked like the Riot(!) the world knew and loved.

"I don't know what it is but I woke up this morning and I feel almost 100%. I guess it really does have to get worse before it gets better." He said, as he thought about how sick he had really been last night. It was as if, with his heightened temperature, he had detoxified himself of the virus through means of perspiration. Minx was overjoyed that he seemed well again but she was still concerned. She didn't want him to over exert himself and relapse

"Never the less Riot I still think you should take it easy today." Minx was stern.

"Very well Minx. I'll be in my room. You may serve me breakfast in bed when I ring for you."

He strolled out of the room with an arrogant stride. 'He's certainly back to normal alright!' She thought almost out loud.

Minx delivered Riot's meal as requested. She noted happily that his appetite had indeed returned. When he had finished she told Riot to stay in bed and she would do the dishes. He told her he had no problems with her suggestion of resting all day but first he desperately wanted a shower and shave.

After washing up in the bathroom he finally felt like his old self. Vanity intact, he scrutinized his appearance and frowned at the discoloration of his still raw nose. He applied an expensive moisturizer in hopes of repairing the chapped edges. He sighed and returned to his bedroom where he remained the rest of the day . He watched T.V. or browsed through the magazines Minx was thoughtful enough to obtain when she had gone shopping the day before. There was a photo editorial on Jem and the Holograms that he stared at dreamily. He was so looking forward to seeing her that weekend. In just two days. He was sure by then he would be fully recovered. All in all his cough was much more mild and he had only sneezed three times so far that day. He was actually surprised by the speed of his recovery. He had thought more then once, during his bout of ill health, he'd have to miss the concert. But thankfully those dark thoughts were behind him. He was in the pink so to speak. And it was exactly that colour that was filtrating thought his mind incessantly. He agonizingly went over what he would say to Jem when he saw her on Sunday. He pictured her voice, her face ,her body. How he long to possess her. 'She cant hold out much longer' He thought. Riot drifted into a delightful afternoon nap and this time all his dreams were pleasant.

At around 4pm Minx decided to head home. As much as she had enjoyed taking care of Riot she was anxious to get back to her own place. She felt far more relaxed as nearly all her concern for Riot had melted wasn't worried anymore about leaving him on his own. Riot walked her to the door as she said goodbye. He kissed her on the top of her head and thanked her again for "putting up with him".

"It was no trouble at all" Minx said pleasantly. She gave a gentle reminder against straining himself and told him she would see him in a couple of days at the concert.

He closed the door behind him and stepped back inside his condo. He went to his room and began planning what he was to wear the evening of their show. He had a few outfits in mind but he wanted to make sure he looked devastatingly handsome. especially for Jem.

The next couple of days passed slowly for Riot. He was bored. Keeping his promise to Minx he made sure to take it easy. That meant not going out and staying in all day. He grew restless so when the night of the concert finally arrived he was even more pumped then usual.

He dressed with care and took extra time with even the most minute details. He had narrowed this evening outfit down to two choices. They both seemed very period. One was a costume inspired very much by the 16Th century. complete with powdered wig , Stocking,heeled shoes and all. And the alternative , which won out in the end, was a pirate themed ensemble. The frock coat was made of a dark gold brocade. He wore fitted leather pants and and a white peasant shirt with a leather vest and matching boots. He toyed with the idea of wearing crystal encrusted eye patch but at the last minute decided against it.

He arrived at the the event looking unbelievably enchaining and of course as always he knew it

He swaggered past most photographers, posed for the lucky ones and made it past the hoards of fan without having to give even one autograph

Now in the convert hall and headed through the snake like passages that lead into the back stage area.

Now to Find Jem!

He keep his eyes peeled for any signs of pink. He walked through the maze like corridors on guard for any trace of her but he found no sign of the holograms lead singer. He passed by the Limp Lizards ,The 5th Avenue Boys and and Johnny Deacon but Jem was strangely absent. He made small talk with the lovely Miss Dark but he quickly cut the conversation short. He was a man with a misson

It was then he saw Rio! His hatred for the roadie forgotton he approched his rival with an assumed air of detachment.

"Have you seen Jem anywhere? I wanted to ask her somthing important." Riot tried to sound casual.

"Jem?" Rio said and forowned. " Shes not here. Shes not performing tonight."

At first Rio's words didnt regisiter. And then when they did they echoed inside his brain in a seemingly endless loop.

'SHE'S NOT PERFROMING????'

He felt the colour drain from his face.

"What?" Riot asked. He could hear the urgency in his voice but he didnt care."Why not?"

"I thought she phoned everyone and told them" Rio tried to expalin. Riot took a deep breath. "Told everyone what!?" Riot questioned sharply

" She's really sick. She came down with that bug thats been going around. I fuguired you knew. She phoned all the performers to tell them "

"But I didnt get any message........." Riot's voice trailed off. And as the realization dawned on him his eyes widned and then became dangerous slivers. "RAPTURE" He hissed.

He felt an uncontrollable rage boil inside of him. He was more then furious he was livid. He felt as if were going to explode with anger. 'This whole time , this WHOLE time she knew. She knew Jem wasnt coming and she LIED to him. Hadnt he gone through he had gone through hell and back just so he could come to this show and see Jem. He had practially willed himself well again and for what ? Jem wasnt there. Jem wasnt coming. That was the only thing that had kept him going as he lay pratically on his death bed. NO! This was unacceptable.' Seething with emotions reserved for the mad he stalked down the winding halls heading for The Stingers dressing area! He couldnt wait to give her a piece of his mind

Rapture sat miserably at the make up table in the brightly light dressing room, nose streaming , head pounding and wishing she had just stayed in bed. It was yesterday when it hit her. Out of nowhere she felt tired and dizzy and it just got progressively worse from there. It was Riot's cold alright! Complete with copy cat symptoms right down to the muscle aches to the unending sneezing fits. The only thing she didn't have was the laryngitis . Not yet anyway. She glanced in the mirror and wrinkled her nose in disgust. It looked red and angry. There were dark circles under her eyes and her hair looked as if her cat thought it was it's new toy. She had tried putting on make up but she just kept sneezing and smudging her eye liner. Not to mention her eyes were watering so much there was no point applying mascara. Rapture had stayed in bed all day hoping to feel well enough to perform in the evening's benefit show. Although she slept the whole afternoon she had awoken feeling worse then she had before . It was as if the virus inside her sensed her guard was down and chose then to invade fully. She truly felt terrible and it was at the moment she realized just what torture Riot had actually gone through. A wave of guilt washed over her as she recalled how poorly she had treated him. She thought about how rude she had been to Minx as well and shrank inside herself with shame.

Her self pity party was interrupted by a member of the hospitality crew asking her if she needed anything. "Doe thag you" She replied congestedly. She picked up a tissue and blew her nose loudly.

"Wow that's a nasty cold you've got there" Replied the young man sympathetically.

Rapture looked at him with intensity. " Its not a cold. It's a rare disease called makabrer Witz-itis. It's from a forgotten region of Africa where they practise a forbidden form of voodoo. That's how I caught it. It's very unpleasant and highly contagious". She coughed intentionally. " Oh did I mention it's fatal as well?! Atchew!!" She sneezed in an exaggerated fashion and laughed inwardly when the mans eyes grew wide with terror. He could not get out of there fast enough. At least they wont bother me now she thought with satisfaction.

Rapture had brought with her some supplies with the hopes they would provide some relief ,at least temporarily. The truth was she dragged herself out of bed that day because she knew how rotten she had been and she really wanted to make it up to Riot and Minx. She figured she would grin and bear it for their sake. She knew how important this concert was and she didn't want to ruin it for The Stingers.

Riot stormed into the dressing room just as Rapture was securing the blanket she taken from home around her shoulders. She was sitting on a chair and had placed her feet into the bucket of steaming hot water in front of her. With the addition to the thermometer in her mouth, It was a scene out of a Norman Rockwell painting.

Riot looked around the room. Odd shaped bottles were open by the sink, Candles lined every inch of the counter top and the place smelled like an occult shop. For a moment Riot forgot what he come to say in the first place.

"What on earth is all this?" Riot asked angrily. " And what is that awful stench?"

"Riot!" Rapture cried happily taking the thermometer out of her mouth" I'm so happy to see you. Those are the healing candles. They are supposed to release a medicinal essence into the air. Only I cant really smell it. "

"Well be thankful for that!" Riot turned to his whimsical band mate and smiled condescendingly " Do you know I just ran into Rio?" He asked without waiting for an answer he continued " And do you know what he told me? He told me ......."

" Wait!" Rapture said " I know what your going to say. And I know I lied"

" Don't interrupt me Rapture! When I am speaking to you I expect you to listen." His emphasis was on the last word. He began speaking again only he was interrupted again only this time by Raptures coughing.

"Stop that!" Riot commanded.

"Riot ,," She gasped between coughs.."I'm sick. I cant 'stop it' "

"Well try! We can discuss that after. You lied to me Rapture. Why didn't you tell me Jem wasn't coming to the show? You knew how important it was for me to see her here. How could you betray me like that? "

Rapture rubbed at her nose it was running again. She sniffled a few times and then explained " Riot I am so sorry I lied. I really really am. I just thought if you knew Jem wasn't going to be here then you would lose all your motivation to get better. I didn't want us to miss this opportunity. I did it for The Stingers. Please don't be mad at me Riot. I don't think I could bare it! "

Riot looked at her. She seemed genuine in her confession. He considered what she had said. It was, he supposed an adequate explanation for her less then satisfactory actions.

"I am still not happy you lied to me but at least I can understand why you did." Although Riot got angry easily his temper usually cooled down shortly after. It was the classic example of "his bark is worse then his bite"

" I really am sorry" And she looked it too. Her eyes were downcast she seemed truly remorseful. She removed her feet from the pail and slowly got up. She walked to where Riot stood and put her arms around him for a fierce hug. "I see your feeling better too" She remarked. " I knew my medicine would work. Too bad I left it at your place I could really use it right about now" Riot thought about that. All this time he had just assumed it was his own doing that had given him such a shockingly quick recovery. He then remembered Minx telling him how well that serum had worked on her as well. 'Well points for Rapture on that one' He thought his earilier anger slowly fading.

Rapture went to the nearby shelf and took a tissue just in time to,,, " EtiiiHHSOOoo" She sneezed wetly into it. She sighed and all at once she sneezed again. " HHiiiitCheww!!" And if she thought it was just going to stop there she was sadly mistaken. "'TishChoo!!" "ATTTISSwhoo" "AT-Chew!!" With each one she felt weaker and weaker. Her energy already depleted it seemed her last once of strength was spent. She made it over to the couch and tumbled into it. She sat holding her head between her knees.

" Ohhh" She moaned " I feel wretched"

"I can see that" Riot said pointedly

" I bet you think I deserve this after how I treated you"

" Rapture" Riot said kindly" If you feel even half as bad as I did , I wouldn't wish it on my own worst enemy"

"Dot evend Rio? You dow I could sdeeze a few dimes in his direction" She joked

" Hmmm... Maybe that's not a bad idea" He said and they both laughed. Which resulted in more heady coughing from Rapture.

The door opened then and Minx walked in to the sounds of hacking." Rapture that's YOU??" She asked in disbelief. " I thought it was Riot"

" It seems as if our lil Rapture has caught cold as well" Riot said. " Not to mention Jem!"

" What? Jem is sick too??"

"Yes. Rio just informed me of this. It seems she called everyone and gave them a message that she would be absent only somehow I didn't get it" He looked over at Rapture but didn't say anything.

"Ohh Riot I'm sorry" Minx said although she was not. She hated seeing how Riot gushed over Jem.

"And Rapture you look awful. Are you feeling alright?"

" Oh Minx never mind about that. I really have something important to tell you. I thought about it over the past few days and I don't know why I was so mean to you. I feel really horrible about what I said to you. Can you please forgive me"

Minx was so relieved. Rapture was her best friend and their fight had been praying on her mind ever since. " Of course I can darling. And I said some things that weren't very nice either so if you can accept my apology then were even"

The two girls embraced. Rapture pulling away quickly to sneeze yet again.

"Oh god" She whined. " I thing Ib dyeig" Minx got up and brought her the box of Kleenex. Rapture smiled thankful and gathered up a bunch of tissue to blow her nose at a thundering volume. It didn't do much good as she still sounded congested when she next spoke " Wed is our sound check?" She asked

"Sound check...?" Minx questioned " Rapture have you heard yourself. You can barley speak let alone sing"

"Bud ...Ib sure ..I cad...." Her voice gave out and when she began coughing again she knew what Minx said was right. She was in no way fit to go on that night.

" Minx is right. We will just have to tell them we cant perform tonight. I am sure they will understand."

"I ab so sorry you guys. I cab here ready to preforb. I didn't dow it would ged this bad"

" We know" Minx said reassuringly." Just rest now" Rapture lay down on the couch and Minx brought over the blanket Rapture had been wearing and tucked it around her. Rapture snuggled underneath and closed her eyes.

" Now what?" Minx said looking toward the band's leader.

"Well what else can we do. I'll go tell Rio what happened and..." He stopped as he looked at Minx pleading eyes.." OK fine YOU go tell Rio whats happened. I think we should wait till our set to go home. I want to at least make a public apology"

"OK..I'll let Rio know" Minx said with a wink. With Jem out of the way she couldn't wait to work some magic of her own on the handsome roadie.

Minx left Rapture and Riot alone.

Riot thought over the events of the past few days. How horribly sick he was just days ago.. How excited he had been to see Jem after he had recovered. The disappointment he felt when he leaned she wasn't there How angry he had been at Rapture for lying. It was alot to take in. He looked over at Rapture sleeping like a baby. He was impressed that although she was clearly ill she still was loyal enough to show up tonight . That meant alot. He was fiercely protective of his band members. He hated to cancel a concert but in the end Raptures health meant more. And really it wouldn't have looked very good on The Stingers part to have Rapture up there coughing and sneezing between and probably during each song. It was the right choice to back out. He amusingly thought of how Minx was using her feminine wiles on Rio right now. He often wished Rio would just dump Jem and go after Minx and then Jem could be his and his alone. Thinking of Jem again brought forth to mind the calamity of this night. There would be other chances he was sure. In the meantime he would send her flowers and a get well card. Perhaps cholcolates as well.

Rapture stirred in her sleep and he remarked how lucky she was to have Minx and him to care for her. Just as he had been so lucky to have Minx. The bonds that held this band together ran deep. Bound eternally by the music they created. The Stingers were much then a musical gorup they were kindred spirits. He knew this expereinces would only strenthen their relationships to one another. He had forgiven Rapture and given what he knew from his recent ailment he could just imagine how she was going to feel when she woke. Ohh it was going to be a long next couple of days. He sighed. no matter he was up for the challange

Edited December 17, 2008 by prisma

[prisma]

Thank you so much Chui. I have tried to stay as true to the characters as possible. It helps to be a Jem freak too!!!

Here is the next part

He got dressed carefully. Normally he would wear one of his flamboyant outfits. He always like to *pardon the pun* cause a riot where ever he went. But today he simply wore a black ribbed turtle neck sweater and black jeans. He honestly did not think he could pull of his ubiquitous black and yellow frock coat and skin tight pants feeling as he did. He pocketed a travel pack of tissues and was out the door.

Minx and Rapture sat at the table in the board room of the Stinger Sound Offices.

They were joined by a couple of stuffy men in suits, a video director, prop designer and a women who like the suits was of an indeterminable position.

They expected Riot any minute. He was late. Again.

In the meantime Rapture was stroking a gold statue of Bast the the cat goddess. She had brought it with her and set it directly inf front of her when she first took her seat When asked what she was doing she looked around the room dramatically and explained that for their new video she wanted to invoke the spirit of the feline Egyptian idol. The video was for for their new song "Egyptian Eyes"

Minx smiled fondly at her friend. What a kook Rapture was. You was never really knew when she was being serious or pulling a hoax but her friends knew all too well that Rapture got a kick out of making others believe her nonsense . Catching her smile Rapture gave her band mate a knowing glance and winked

The minutes ticked by

Minx soon turned her attention to the cute young videoographer sitting next to her

"So darling" Minx murmured in her sexy German accent."What are you doing later tonight?" Much to his regret he never got to answer the question as the final member of the Stingers arrived

"Hello everyone. My apologies for being late" Riot's trademark velvety voice sounded strained and painfully hoarse.

A series of greetings went around the room. He took a set at the head of the table.

They began to discuss the plans for the video in regard to concepts and wardrobe and location ideas. The meeting seemed to drone on and one. where as Riot would usually be the centre of all the discussion he couldn't seem to concentrate today. What he did notice that anytime he coughed or sniffled either Minx or Rapture would look at him questiongly. Was he that obviously unwell?

"Well how authentic to you want to play this thing? The director asked " Do you think we should shoot on location in Egypt?" Riot had been feeling need to sneeze even before the question was asked. It had been there torturing his nostrils for a few minutes now and Riot was doing his best to keep it at bay. He was about to answer and all at once it came over him. He held up 1 finger as if to say hold on and then turned away just in time to sneeze in the cook of his arm.

"HEheegChoo!!!"

Riot dug out the pack of tissues and turned his back to the room while he blew his nose. He tried to be as discreet as possible. He turned back around and smiled as charismatic a smile as he could muster.

"Yes. Egypt sounds quite fantastic actually" He tried to sound enthusiastic.

"great" The suit said." we will start working on the exact location immediately. Any specific monuments you might like to have in the video"

Why did they keep asking him questions? His nose twitched. He needed to sneeze again. Badly He put his finger above his top lip in an attempt to ward the sneeze off. It did not seem to be helping

"Pardon me . I ..I'm..Ahhchhish!!...Hhemmph!!!Achoo..." He tried to answer the question but the sneeze did not stop there. Nope. They were persistent. "hiitchew! hatchooo! Heeressh!! Hinxt AHHTCHEW" He grabbed a tissue from his back pocket and turned away again as he tried to clear the resulting congestion. It came out sounding much louder then intended and when he finally turned around his cheeks were rosy with embarrassment. Everyone was staring

[prisma]

Hey Im not sure if this is a faux pas but I was trying to see if I could edit something in this story. For some unknown reason I wrote Minx had a Russian accent and although the voice actress who voiced her sounds totally russian Minx is German and as a huge fan of Jem I am really embarrassed I guess I cant edit my own posts though. I tried to erase it but I can so mods do your thing. Im sorry. Please forgive me..