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Bathtime had never been easy at Raife's house, and at the moment, neither of two of her youngest were making it any easier. With six pint sized charges running around her house, she really didn't have the time to deal with the naked yellow and red blur dashing around her living room at top speed.

Okay, so he was always naked. That didn't make it any better.

He was dripping suds, great billowing clouds of white soap, drooling off him in puffs as he hid behind furniture, giggling as Raife chased him in a gesture they both knew was futile.

"Galen, stop it!! I mean it!" The little demon babbled something back at her that sounded a lot like her same words fired back at her. She groaned.

That was the last time she let one of the older kids watch them. Putting on all the speed she could manage, she lunged for him, only to find a faceful of carpet as her reward. She scowled up at the fitful giggling of her charge as he floated two inches above her head, wings batting rapidly just to keep him afloat.

"Not funny, mister." Galen obviously didn't agree.

Grabbing him by an ankle, she scooped up the wiggling little creature and carried him back to the bath, shutting the door behind her. She didn't have to look to know that Moros was already there, curled up in the corner of the warm bath, coughing and hacking and pointedly not playing with the bubbles. Definitely sulking. Raife put on a smile, and lowered Galen into the tub. Despite his earlier escape, he loved the bath, and dived right into the bubbles, splashing and making a nuisance of himself. Raife chuckled as Moros winced, trying to hide from the splashes of water, even though he was already wet.

It was a job getting the two of them scrubbed down, but with a little bit of effort and a lot of soap, they were clean, and Raife was wrapping them up tightly in towels before they knew it. She especially made sure to blowdry Moros's long hair, as he tended to get sick if it was left wet for even an hour.

They were already bickering in babble when she laid them down for bed. It was a good sign. It meant that Moros was over his sulking earlier and feeling well enough to fight. Laughing a bit, she let them argue on into the dark.

It was rare for Alexi to actually fly over instead of garnering a visit to his office from Raife. It was a long flight from Russia and time Alexi couldn't really spare to take off, especially with the winter flu season coming. But Raife hadn't wanted to move Moros, and Alexi had agreed.

"We don't know what's wrong with him." Had come the staticy mellow voice of the doctor over the telephone. "It could be something serious. I would advise not moving him at all until I come. He could have spinal damage or neck damage or...any number of things could be the reason he's passed out. We don't want to make it worse." Raife had wholeheartedly agreed, and this was a chance to have Alexi and his partner Yousei at her house, feed them, shelter them from the burgeoning Russian winter. They wouldn't stay long though, of course. Alexi was needed where he was, and Yousei went whereever the doctor did.

Raife met the two of them at the airport with Mikhael in tow. There was no way Raife was going anywhere with Alexi involved without Mik, so she'd reluctantly agreed to let him come along. It'd be easier, instead of fighting with him for half an hour before they left. They really didn't have the time.

Watching the luggage go around the rubber belt, Raife leant against a pole, rubbing the bridge of her nose with two fingers. It was always something, wasn't it? She wished she could just have Alexi around all the time instead of going through this constant back-and-forth tag game when one of her boys got ill. She thanked the powers that be for Declan's good health, and Cole's spry athleticism. She hadn't had any problems with the two of them yet. But Moros...and THIS one...she looked over at Mikhael and sighed, ruffling the boy's hair. Before Mikhael could even look up at her, Alexi came down the elevator and the boy was off like a shot, wrapping himself around Alexi and clinging like a burr. The man was one of his favorite people by far.

Raife just smiled. It was a treat to see her boy beaming. The smile couldn't penetrate through the fog of worry for long though, and she strode quickly over to Alexi and wrapped him in a tight hug. "I'm glad you're here. Did you bring any luggage? Where's Yousei?" Alexi just squeezed her shoulder lightly.

"He's watching over a boy staying at the hospital. No, no luggage, ptichka. It's all here." He patted a backpack on his back. Mikhael reached up and snatched it for him, struggling with it a bit before scampering around him, helpfully, always willing to do something for Lexi.

"Well, that makes it easy. I've got Trance watching the boys at home. He'll be happy to see you too." Alexi's cheeks pinkened slightly at the mention of an old crush, but he just smiled.

"I miss him too."

"Did you give your brother anything, Galen?" Raife perched on the edge of the bed, rubbing the boys backs, while Galen looked up at her with big eyes. She chose her words slowly, trying to find simple words for his growing brain. Galen had trouble communicating as it was, with anyone but his brother. "Food, Galen? Did you feed Moros?" Galen frowned, as if he was thinking quite hard. Then he shook his head.

"No foods."

Raife sighed. "Anything, Galen? Can you remember anything that might have triggered it?" Galen furrowed his brow again, then, after a few moments, paled and looked down at his brother, then away, ashamed. Raife shifted closer, laying a hand on his shoulder. "I'm not mad at you, Galen. I won't be. Just tell me." Galen frowned at his feet, wiggling his toes a bit.

"Get better, Connor."

Raife frowned, puzzled. What did her youngest, Connor, have to do with it? He'd had the sniffles the other day, and she'd just given him some Nyquil and... oh. She smiled, in an effort to look sympathetic.

"Galen, did you give Moros some of the get better medicine? The liquid in the green bottle?" She pointed to Moros to illustrate the color. "Moros colored liquid?" Galen nodded, urgently. Raife sighed, and closed her eyes. She couldn't blame the thule. Obviously, he'd seen the effect that the medicine had had on the robust Connor, and thought it would do good for Moros. It was a rather intelligent link for the usually rather primal little boy to make, and Raife felt a conflicting surge of pride in the boy, for his intuitive behavior, but worry for his twin. She looked at Alexi. The muse doctor was silent, taking in the situation. "Alexi, what should we do?"

Alexi frowned, watching Moros. "I'm not sure. It's good to know that the effects of the medicine should be temporary. Though I don't know what sort of effects this might have had on his system for the long run. What's the opposite of medicine? Should we let him out in the rain til he catches a cold? I just don't know."

Raife shook her head. No, that was probably irresponsible. But maybe...if they could somehow get the medicine out of his system..."Could you draw some blood, Alexi? Maybe see how much is left in his system?" Alexi nodded. "Good idea. Maybe we might just have to wait this out. I just hope he'll be okay until then." He put a firm hand on Raife's shoulder. "You should leave for this." Raife nodded, trusting the man implicitly, and walked numbly into the hall.

They had a hypothesis, but really, what kind of hypothesis was it? Wait and see? She wondered if that would be too late for the little thule.

"Follow me."

Now that Moros was well, Raife had a treat for her boys. With Moros's sickness, it was hard to get them out anywhere, but, for a few days, after the explosion of sickness, Moros had seemed slightly less sick, and was prone to whining and wanting out of bed for short periods of time. Raife decided it was the perfect time to take advantage of this most-likely temporary occurance and take the boys out on an outing.

Of course, again, I had to consider Moros. Specifically, Moros's allergies. Allergic to most plant pollens, sap, and anything else au naturale outside that you could name, I had to bundle him up in a tiny coat and scarf, to try and keep his skin and face clear. He looked like a tiny snowbunny in the middle of spring. I gave Galen a shirt, so he wouldn't feel left out, scooped up Moros, and we started off to our intended destination -the park!

It was amazing how ordinary a trip could feel so extraordinary with the aduthule. Galen's eyes burst wide at the first glimpse of the park- gleaming metal jungle gyms, colorful plastic slides, a rickety bridge, monkey bars, a large tire swing, the works! Before Raife could give any instructions on behavior, tell him to stay close, not to talk to strangers, to be respectful to other kids on the equipment, he was off like a shot, disappearing like a yellow and red blur into the metal and plastic jungle.

As Raife set Moros onto his feet, the sick thule was more reserved. To Raife's delight, however, even his eyes lit up a little at the sign of the structure. He was hesitant as he walked over, however. There were kids on it already, not to mention his rambunctious brother, and he was afraid of anything that he could hurt himself on. Injury came so easily. Raife smiled and took his hand, bending down a little to lead him over. She set Moros onto the smaller slide, and the boy's eyes went wide as he came tumbling down, only to end up clinging onto the sides, halfway down in terror. Raife chuckled a little, inwardly. He hadn't really been in any danger. She supposed maybe they better try something with a little less movement. The jungle gym seemed the thing. Galen was already on it, zooming around the dome of it like a tiny monkey. As Raife scooped Moros back up and approached, he beamed in obvious excitement, practically jumping out of his skin. Reaching for his brother, Galen guided Moros to sit next to him on the gym. After a careful moment of teetering balance, Moros managed to wedge himself in a spot, and sat, mollified, for a few moments, while his brother zoomed and danced through bars around him in a complicated aerial ballet.

After an hour of play, Moros's drooping posture and a sudden and persistant cough urged Raife to her next move. She scooped up the boy, and motioned to Galen, who gave a token whine of disapproval. But the sun was riding low in the sky anyway, and it was time to go home for supper. At the first mention of food, Galen was all too happy to follow Raife home or to the ends of the Earth, if that's where the food was. It had been a short day, but a productive one, and one of the best days out in their short lives. Now, they'd feast.