"...usually we'd have more mage backup close to hand but if they're close to hand they'll get sick, this is extremely contagious, so we have Nayoki farther out. Uh, I guess we might need to worry about enough of the servants getting sick that there's not enough people keeping up with cooking and laundry, that would suck."

"It really would. It would not be an immediately life-threatening emergency, though, so we - well, Nayoki - could perhaps Gate in help at that point." 

"Yeah. Uh, I guess the people who think it was us could get madder and crazier but Randi's alive and holed up safe and I don't see them going against direct orders from the King, which he can probably yell out a window or have his Companion Broadsend if it's really necessary."

"Randi is still not sick? I am guessing that at this point, he would have gotten sick if he were going to, but I am not sure, do illnesses sometimes take longer than that to show symptoms?" 

"Some of them, but this one doesn't seem to and he's with Shavri, they're both isolated in their room. She's probably watching him very closely."

"That is something." Leareth yawns. "I have been awake for two candlemarks and I think I need to go to sleep again. Being ill is terrible." 

"It is." She kisses the back of his head. "I think you're on the mend, though."

And she tucks him in and scrubs and checks and goes to crash on Amshalan.

She needs to murder a small colony of the flu again but they die pretty easily. 

:This is getting so ridiculous and I only ever see you for five seconds before you're asleep on me: Amshalan nuzzles her.

:I'm not completely dead tired yet, though I can't promise I won't fall asleep midconversation: Pet pet.

:How are you holding up? I don't just mean physically. I would be so mind-numbingly bored of putting water into people, in your place - actually, I'm not even doing it and I'm bored of it: 

:It's very boring. I'd like an hour to read a book or something. But stopping wouldn't feel better, you know?:

:No, I know: Snuggle. :And relentlessly boring is better than the alternative, so I don't wish for anything more exciting: 

:You don't? It would be very exciting if, oh, Vanyel came up with an inventive way to stuff an entire node through his Healing-Gift and cure everybody for miles around down to the hangnails and headaches:

:All right, fair, that's true: 

:But yes, most random exciting things that could happen would be bad:

:And if only very boring things happen, I think we'll be all right eventually? I hope: 

:Some of the steps of Plan A are pretty exciting, but maybe we'll find a very boring way to blow up the moon:

:True. And, I really really hope we do: Sleepy nuzzle. :You should rest: 

:Good night:

And she snuggles up and sleeps.

When she wakes up, Amshalan is waiting, she feels nervous and tense. 

:...is everything okay?:

:I cannot believe that more things keep happening. It's not that much worse, maybe, but - Rolan got in early this morning and there's some sort of giant demonstration in Haven about how Leareth is evil and going to destroy the Kingdom. At this point I think someone has to be orchestrating all of this, there's no way it just got out in the city and welled up spontaneously like that, but - we don't know who, or what they want or why: 

:Well. Could be a god.

I guess our party could leave, hole up in the north till our sick are better, but that kind of leaves Gemma completely alone with everybody else who's sick:

:I don't like that plan much! I suppose in a pinch, you and Leareth could get out and he could leave his Healers to fend for themselves, it's not ideal but they're, er, more expendable than either of you. Not that I think we're in danger from the crowd in Haven, they're a long way off and not very organized and they don't have any strong Herald-Mages to do a Gate anyway: