Tony had been so worried about Ivy that he hadn’t been worrying about himself. He found it hard to concentrate and hated that he was restricted from seeing her. He felt so helpless. Tony watched as the prefects were swarmed with extra work due to the illness that swept over the castle. It was beyond frustrating. Here he was, good and healthy and knowing what a prefect needed to do and he had to sit back and do nothing.
 
The stress, frustrations, and worry was clearly getting to him. Lately he just couldn’t get enough sleep. Tony chalked it up to staying up late to finish class work that he couldn’t focus on during the day because he was worried  about not just Ivy but all of his friends that had grown ill as well. He tossed and turned in his sleep and found that he was exhausted the next day.
 
He shivered throughout the day even though the castle had been kept relatively warm during the unnaturally lengthy cold weather. It was when the sore throat came and was quickly followed by a painful cough and difficulty breathing that Tony knew that he wasn’t just stressed out.
 
Each step to the hospital wing hurt. He became easily winded but he had strength enough to reach where he need to be. One look at him and Madam Pomfrey took him in. The Hospital Wing wasn’t all that comforting but Tony knew it was the best place for him.
 
The school nurse did a quick run over of him before allowing him to collapse on a bed – a bed that happened to be right next to Ivy. Tony didn’t know if Madam Pomfrey had done that on purpose. Maybe she thought she could provide at least some kind of comfort for them in their time of need. Maybe it was a complete accident. Madam Pomfrey, after all, probably didn’t know the two were even dating. Such gossip was probably beyond a woman in her position.
 
Tony turned his head to the side and watched Ivy sleeping for a few moments. Then he turned his head back and closed his eyes, trying to get the rest he was prompted to get. It was difficult though when his breathing was shallow and his throat so sore it felt like it was on fire. Exhaustion outweighed the extreme discomfort though and he eventually fell asleep.
 
“If you wanted to go on a date, there are easier ways than getting sick yourself,” Ivy wheezed tiredly as she stretched out her hand towards him.

 
He didn’t know how long he had been dozing for but hearing Ivy’s voice jolted him into a more focused mentality – at focused as he could be while feeling so terribly awful, Looking Ivy’s way again, seeing her hand, Tony reached for it, wincing . He held it and gave it a squeeze, wincing again. It hurt and it had probably hurt her too.
 
“It seemed like a good idea at the time.” Merlin, even smiling hurt! But he did it anyways. He laughed a little too before his laugh turned into a hacking cough that made his body curl in on himself as it tried to manage the pain.

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