No.6 (Nezumi, M)

[Malarkey]

My first contribution to this side of the forum! Shion and Nezumi are both such precious babies, so hopefully I've managed to do them justice. No real spoilers for anything, so you should be okay to read even if you've not read/watched the series.

Please enjoy!

Shion knows Nezumi hasn’t been feeling well these past couple of days. He knows it, and he's a little worried, but he’s been trying his very best not to hover over him for fear of inciting his wrath.

Logically, he’s certain Nezumi is more than capable of caring for himself—he’s been doing it for years, after all. Still, there’s something about his fever-flushed cheeks and raw, chapped nose that makes Shion’s heart twist with concern.

But he endures it in relative silence—only offering a polite “bless you” for each of Nezumi’s more and more frequent sneezes—for three days. On the fourth day, when it becomes apparent that the singer is not getting any better on his own, he goes out into the marketplace to procure some basic cold supplies. He knows Nezumi must realize what he’s doing, though he doesn’t comment on it—but he also doesn’t refuse the warm blanket Shion wraps around his shoulders, nor the cup of hot tea he presses into his hands.

Now, it is the morning of the fifth day, and they are still going about their daily routines. Shion is pondering what to make for breakfast, and calls lazily over his shoulder to ask Nezumi’s opinion. When he doesn’t get an immediate reply, however, he turns around, only to discover his companion halfway through the process of pulling on his boots, interrupted by the hitching of his breath and the fluttering of his eyelashes, which by this point Shion knows will only end in the inevitable—

“H…h—NGXTH! …NNTSSH! H—NNTSGH! …Guh…” Nezumi groans a little before he can stop himself, eyes and nose both streaming as he sniffles wetly.

“Bless you,” Shion says, reaching for the nearby box of tissues (which he’d paid too much for, he knows, but it’s been a small mercy to see Nezumi wipe his nose on something other than his sleeve), holding them out until the other plucks one from the top of the box. “Just where do you think you’re going, anyway?” he questions, motioning towards his shoes.

“I have to go to worg,” Nezumi insists, scrubbing roughly at the underside of his irritated nose, “It’s dot like I cad just call id sig.”

For all of his concern (which is most definitely still there, he swears), Shion can’t help but snort, trying unsuccessfully to smother a sudden burst of laughter into his coat sleeve.

Nezumi, meanwhile, is annoyed. “What are you laughig at? I’b serious.”

“I know, I know,” Shion replies, wiping a tear from his eye, “It’s just that I suddenly got this mental image of you performing the way you sound right now. Can you hear yourself?”

“I—” and, as if on the command of some cruel god, Nezumi’s voice rises in pitch and cracks on the very first syllable, causing Shion to dissolve into helpless giggles again. “Stop bakig fud of be,” he complains, burying his face in his hands.

“I’m sorry,” Shion apologizes, though a smile still lingers on his face. “You just sound so congested. Can you really not tell? Or are your ears blocked up too?”

Nezumi’s nose twitches, and he sneezes a quick, half-stifled, “NGTXH” into the crook of his elbow before looking up to meet Shion’s eyes. “I cad’t really hear byself. I feel like I’b udderwater,” he admits, blowing his nose roughly into the soggy tissue. “Is it hodestly that bad? Do you thig the audiedce will dotice?”

Shion nods, reaching over to run his fingers through his lover’s messy hair, not missing the way he leans subtly into his touch. “There’s no way they couldn’t. You sound awful. Do you want me to send Cravat with a note for your manager? I’m sure he can find someone else to fill your place for today.”

Nezumi nods, silently kicking off his shoes and flopping back onto the mattress.

Shion stands, walking over to the desk and painstakingly writing out the message on a tiny slip of paper, sending the little creature on its way with a soft word of thanks. Then, he turns towards the bed, wondering what on earth to do with his newfound patient. “Do you want something to eat?” is what he settles on.

Nezumi mumbles something inaudible, and Shion steps closer in order to hear him.

“What was that?”

“I s…said—h—hNNGTH—HTSCHH…hh—NGXTH…ugh…goddabbit…” he swears, sitting up and holding the back of his wrist to his dripping nose, looking around for the tissues.

Shion locates them first, snagging one out of the box and thrusting it into his hands.

Nezumi responds with a thick, stuffy noise that is probably intended to be some form of thanks, and blows his nose with a sound that makes Shion wince in sympathy. He crumples up the paper, tossing it in the vague direction of the waste-bin, before sagging back down onto the mattress.

“So…breakfast?” Shion tries again.

Nezumi coughs a little, shaking his head. “Baybe just tea?”

“Okay,” Shion agrees, “Soup later, then?”

“Mmhmm,” Nezumi responds, turning over onto his side to face the wall.

Shion smiles, lifting the blanket from its fallen position on the floor and draping it over the prone form on the bed. Wordlessly, Nezumi snakes an arm out, finding Shion’s hand and giving it a tight squeeze. Shion squeezes back before tucking the blanket tightly around his shoulders, turning towards the other side of the room to put water on for tea.

Nezumi is asleep before the kettle boils.

[PuddinPop]

I have no idea what this fandom is, but I really like this. I can't comment on how in-character it is, but it was really well written and I really hope you write more!

Your spellings are awesome, they just jump right out and are so easy to be able to hear in my head. I approve

“I—” and, as if on the command of some cruel god, Nezumi’s voice rises in pitch and cracking on the very first syllable, causing Shion to dissolve into helpless giggles again. “Stop bakig fud of be,” he complains, burying his face in his hands.

This made me laugh out loud xD and the description of his voice is so spot on. Good job!

“I s…said—h—hNNGTH—HTSCHH…hh—NGXTHgoddabbit…” he swears, sitting up and holding the back of his wrist to his dripping nose, looking around for the tissues.

I love this part. Something about someone saying "goddammit" after a few sneezes just melts me into a puddle.

Shion smiles, lifting the blanket from its fallen position on the floor and draping it over the prone form on the bed. Wordlessly, Nezumi snakes an arm out, finding Shion’s hand and giving it a tight squeeze. Shion squeezes back before tucking the blanket tightly around his shoulders, turning towards the other side of the room to put water on for tea.

This is amazing. That little hand squeeze. God, my heart. Absolute perfection.

I really do hope you continue this, you've introduced me to this fandom and I'm intrigued to see where it goes

[Choobat]

AAAHHHHHHH!!!!! You are officially my favorite writer on here now!!! I can't stop smiling right now and I just posted I wanted a fix of this in the unappreciated fandom thread and aahhhhhhh I'm DYING

[Malarkey]

@PuddinPop: Thank you so much!! I highly recommend the series to anyone who wants their heart shattered into a million pieces has an interest in these sorts of futuristic/dystopian settings. It's one of my personal favs. Not sure if there will be a second part or not, but it will certainly end up here if it happens!

@ShyFoxy: That's really kind of you to say, thank you!! There's not enough No.6 fic in the world to satisfy my wants/needs, so I knew I just had to write one eventually, haha.

[weepy]

ohhhh this is so cute! Nezumi is so lovely and the portrayal of him here is delicious! Nice writing!

[Akahana]

Holy shit yeeeeeeeeeeess~

There is a serious lack of No.6 fanfiction on here this made me really happy thank you <3

[Malarkey]

@MissSys & Akahana: Thank you both so much! Glad you enjoyed!

[jano]

GAHHHH I JUST SQUEALED! I literally JUST finished No.6 yesterday.... NezumixShion is becoming my absolute favorite ship and this fic so far is just..... *squeals* I am so in love!!! It's kinda like a dream come true... ^Q^

[Malarkey]

@bellows: No idea how I missed your comment the first time around, but thank you so much! Glad you enjoyed. ^^

[Chibi cinna_natchan detchu]

KYAAAA!! I love this!

NezumiXShion for the win!!

your writing is sooo good!

ek! that was so cute omg omg <3

[shingetsu]

........Excuse me while I squee~ This is so, so very very cute that I can't even... Shion always made a good caretaker, he just naturally fits in the role. And (awwww!) Nezumi is so docile when he's sick, anyone would want to take care of him~ Hope to see lots more of this!!

[Malarkey]

@Chibi, thank you so much!! Glad you enjoyed!

@nervousloony, something had to make that boy docile at some point (besides Shion himself, of course). With his character type, he's just begging to be fussed over.