Freezing Colds

A/N: I don't own the Storm Hawks. On with the story!

The Common Cold, also known as nasopharyngitis, is an infectious disease caused by virus. It affects the upper respiratory system, and is generally caused by the rhinoviruses and coronaviruses. Symptoms include cough, runny nose, sore throat, fever, headaches and loss of appetite.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

"Finn? Wake up. You're late for breakfast!"

"FINN? WAKE UP. YOU'RE LATE FOR BREAKFAST!"

Knock. Knock.

BANG! BANG!

"Finn?"

"FINN?"

Aerrow opened the door slightly, to see his best friend and teammate frowning in his sleep. The boy looked ill. His skin was pink and hot to the touch. He kept sniffling.

"Finn? Oh god, you better take some medicine."

"Aerrowwww…keep it down…ughhh…" Finn moaned in his sleep and turned.

"Wake up," Aerrow commanded, gently shaking Finn's shoulder.

What Finn heard it as was, "WAKE UP!"

With a groan and a cuss, he opened his eyes, letting a massive headache hit him. He focused on Aerrow, who in turn focused on him. The Sky Knight's green eyes looked at him worriedly. Finn's body ached like he'd been beaten repeatedly with a club. It felt as though someone was slamming his temples with a hammer. It was freezing too. Where had the heat gone? He sniffled, and sneezed.

The Finnster was sick.

Aerrow helped him into a sitting position, muttering, "You have a fever. Just great."

"Lemme be," Finn moaned, feeling his eyelids go heavy again.

"Ohh no," was the curt reply. "I know how you get when you're sick."

Well duh. It was an open secret. Finn…well…even if he got the slightest flu, he'd be down for days. It was as if the cold would suck every ounce of his energy and dispose of it. Finn absolutely hated being ill. It was bad for the rep. And beyond a point, it was just lame. Luckily he had a good immune system. But when he did get infected…well…that was that.

"I'm fine," Finn snapped, not really in the mood to argue. Aerrow ignored him as he got up.

"I'm gonna go get a thermometer or something…kay?"

Oh sure. With Doctor Aerrow taking care of him, he'd be just fine. "You do that. I'll go write my will."

The redhead rolled his eyes and walked out.

The bed was soft and cozy and inviting. Screw Aerrow and his thermometer, Finn thought simply, lying back down on the pillows. He was asleep almost instantly. It was a nice dream too. Full of electric guitars and babes, and the Dark Ace dancing the Macarena with Cyclonis. Epic.

So naturally, he was disturbed again.

At least this pair of hands was smaller and softer. Someone muttered something, but he wasn't even aware. It sounded like, "Ya hiz ick bad." The voice was definitely Piper's. He felt something soft and wet on his forehead. Water dripped to his shut eyes, and forced him awake.

Golden orbs came into view. Piper, of course, wiping his face with a wet cloth. "Good morning," she said brightly. The only time she's this nice to him is when he's not doing so great. Finn decided it was safe to assume that he was sick pretty badly. Behind her was Aerrow, giving him worried looks.

Piper coolly took out a thermometer, and before he could complain, stuck it into his mouth and held it there. She had a talent for being very motherly, whether she knew it or not. "One-Hundred-And-Four," was the verdict, three minutes later. She took the thermometer out and kept it aside. Turning, she told Aerrow, "Get something light for him to eat. Some fruits? And get an aspirin."

Aerrow nodded. "It may…uh…take a while."

"Why's that?" she said pointedly.

"We're out of fruits." He frowned. "I'll get some milk or something."

"You do that," Piper told him before turning back to Finn. "You, meanwhile," she ordered, "Go brush and wash your face. Now I don't care how much you protest, but I'm not going to let you eat without cleaning your teeth, ya hear?"

Finn was neither hungry nor thirsty, but he decided he didn't want to cross blades with Piper when she was being this nice. However, he rolled his eyes as he got out of bed, his whole body protesting. The pounding ache in his temples returned, but he ignored it.

Making his way to the bathroom, he sneezed. The floor was wet and cold and it made him shiver. But he quickly brushed and splashed some water onto his visage before ambling back to his room.

Piper was there, laboriously arranging some chocolate milk and a bowl of cereal around a tiny table. When she saw him, she flashed a smile before getting back to work. Unused to such a greeting from her, he didn't know what to do. Finn sat on his bed and hugged himself against the cold.

"I've kept a sweater out," she told him, pointing at the foot of his bed, "Wear it." It was obvious she'd been rifling through his cupboard because clothes hung out and dangled to the floor. But the sharpshooter wasn't feeling too sharp today. He just wore the woolen pullover and kept his silence.

"You feeling better?" she asked finally, handing him the milk glass. "It's hot chocolate," she promised, "With two marshmallows, just the way you like it." Sure enough, two soggy white blobs found their way to the surface of the cup and bobbed up and down.

"You're like my mom," Finn said finally, taking the beverage from her.

Piper smirked. "Aren't you glad?"

"You have no idea." He quietly sipped the drink, allowing it to warm him up. He saw her watching him. It felt nice to have someone hovering around just to make sure he was alright. Finn closed his eyes, exhausted.

"And I want you to eat that cereal, get it?" she said, "You need to have a full stomach before you take your medicine."

Finn groaned at the thought, but said nothing. He knew she wasn't going to take no for an answer. There was a slight knock on the door and Junko opened it without waiting for a response. "Hi," he said, "You feeling okay? Aerrow told us you were sick."

"I ain't sick," Finn protested, "I'm just a lil under the weather. Geddit? Under the weather?"

Piper and Junko exchanged confused glances. Yep, Finn was sick alright. The delirium was getting to him.

"…Well…" Junko mumbled, "Feel better, okay?" before closing the door. An awkward silence commenced.

Finally, Finn sighed, putting the half-finished cup on the small table. "This sucks," he muttered.

"Awh come on," Piper consoled, "Think about it this way: When you're sick, you get all the attention. You like that!"

"I like positive attention," Finn responded simply, "Not…weird attention. Like you're giving me now!" As expected, Piper rolled her eyes.

"I'm being nice. Caring. You want me to start screaming at you for taking my crystals again?"

"No, I'll pass," Finn replied dryly.

"Good." She exhaled and sat against the foot of his bed. There was another silence. This one friendlier. Comfortable.

And then Piper broke it. "You know," she said softly, "I remember when I was sick, my mom used to sing me a song. A really silly song, now that I think about it. I don't remember exactly, but it had something to do with pink monkeys stealing your cold. " She chuckled lightly and sighed. Finn looked at her intently. "I miss her," Piper mused.

"When fell sick," Finn started, "I would invariably end up in hospital."

"That's harsh," Piper replied with a wince.

"Yeah….so my dad used to get me a chocolate bar for every day that I was stuck in there with an IV in my hand. And as soon as I got out, he'd go and buy me a keychain. By the time I was nine, I had at least seven different kinds."

"Why a keychain?" Piper asked.

Finn shrugged. "Why not a keychain?"

"Fair enough."

"So, Piper, what's the deal with you and crystals?" He had no clue where the question had come from, but now that he'd said it, he was curious.

She turned to look at him. "That's an interesting one," she muttered. "I have no idea. I just...like them, I guess."

Finn took a long gulp of his hot chocolate and placed the empty glass on the table. Piper pointed at the cereal bowl. "Eat," she ordered.

"I'm not hungry!"

"I don't care."

Finn knew it was pointless so he took the bowl and obediently chewed a few morsels. It tasted like soggy cardboard to him, but he didn't complain. He was feeling tired again. And he just wanted to sleep. And it was only…what? Nine in the morning?

"It'll suck if the Cyclonians attack today," he mumbled.

"Don't jinx it," Piper replied.

Finn smirked and put the bowl down. "I'm done."

"Finn!"

"Please…! I'll be sick."

"You are sick." But she looked at him with pity, then at the cereal bowl. "Alright. Three more bites."

"Two."

"Four."

"Piper!"

"Do you want to make that five?"

"Okay, FINE. Three it is," Finn snapped and picked up the bowl again. Torturous bites later, Piper gave him a small white pill and a glass of water.

"After this," she told him, "I want you to sleep."

"I'm not complaining," Finn replied as he took the medicine.

Within the next ten minutes, he was snoring, safely in dreamland.

Four Days Later

"Piper," Aerrow barked firmly, "You're going to go to bed. NOW."

"No…" Piper protested for the umpteenth time. "I just need to figure out this—ACHOO!"

"Figure out this 'Achoo'…Where have I head that one before?" Finn joked. Apparently, Piper had caught his cold. And now Finn was all healthy again. Piper wasn't. And as usual, she was deliberately overdoing it. Trying to prove a point.

"Shut up, Finn."

But the blonde was having none of it. Not only was there a debt to be repaid, but revenge to be taken as well. She was slight, thin, and right now, tired. Finn swiftly walked up to her and lifted her by the waist.

"WHAT THE HELL!" she cried, and suddenly started to cough. "PUT ME DOWN!"

"Awh come on, Piper," Finn joked as he carried her to her room. "I'm only trying to help!"

"I will SO kill you."

He threw her onto her bed and tucked her in. "I'm going to get you something warm to drink," he began, "And then I'm gonna make sure you take your medicine. Get it?"

She glared up at him. "Oh come on! What are you, my dad?" she snapped.

He winked at her good-naturedly, obviously enjoying being in charge. "Nah. I'm just a friend." With that, he turned heel and walked back out, with the navigator glaring daggers at him.

A/N: For those of you who like Finn/Piper, you're welcome to interpret this that way. But I wrote this as a friendship fic. Anyhoo, I hope you enjoyed reading it. Please review :)