Gard woke up the next morning right where he had fallen to sleep- next to Sercy. They were still under the tree, and it looked as though it had rained the night before. He yawned and moved away from Sercy, leaving her to sleep a little longer before they set off on their adventure again. He imagined she needed all the rest she could get if she was going to continue looking for her home. Who knew how much longer until Oko found it for them, if he was even leading them to it at all! The trickster could have been trying to pull some kind of con on them.

Though he supposed he wasn't SO bad, even if he was kind of cold. He supposed there was a good reason for that.

He noticed, then, that Okonoko didn't seem to be in the den with them. That was strange- it wasn't like there wasn't room for him in there. The dug out cavern under the tree was big enough for the three of them. Even if Gard was a full-sized lion, there probably would have been room for the three of them. Clearly it had been a home for some family or something. So, then, where the heck was he? Had he not come back to the den at all? Last Gard remembered, he had stayed outside to keep watch, but it hadn't been raining then.

Sighing, Gard wandered out of the den, to look for the hyena. He didn't really care what happened to the guy, of course, but Sercy seemed to like him. So he did his best to hunt for the guy. When he found him, however, his grumpy demeanor shifted, concern taking him over. Okonoko was lying some distance from the den, breathing heavily. He looked like he wasn't injured, but he wasn't exactly well, either.

"Okonoko?!" gasped Gard, scurrying over as quickly as he could. He placed his paws on the hyena's shoulder, giving him a shove to try and wake him. But the hyena didn't waken. He felt warm. Sick? Because of the rain? No, that wouldn't have hurt him. They were used to being out in the rain, and it couldn't have been that much of it. A sprinkle if that. No, it must have been because he hadn't been taking care of himself for a while. Now he was sick! "Hold on, I'll get Sercy!" He told the unconscious Hyena, before hurrying back to the den. He all but ran into the lioness to wake her, and she gave a grunt in response.

"What's the matter Gard, you look so frightened!"

"It's Okonoko," Gard huffed, "I found him not far from here- he's passed out! I think he's really sick!" That got Sercy to her paws right away, the lioness following the smaller animal out of the den and towards the hyena. When she saw him, she let out a gasp, moving over to him as quickly as Gard had and placing a paw on his cheek. He did seem hot. Frowning, she looked from their fallen friend to Gard. "Is-is he going to die?" Asked Gard. Sercy smiled faintly, shaking her head.

"No, he's just exhausted. I think his body gave out on him," she said softly to the jackal, "we'll need to help him, though, okay? I'm going to get him back to the den, and I want you to find something to carry some water in and bring it back to me. Do you think you can do that?"

"I can!" Said Gard, before rushing off into the brush. While he was doing that, Sercy moved over to OKonoko, who groaned as she did her best to get him on her back. He finally woke up with all the shifting.

"What's going on?" He groaned.

"You're exhausted, my dear, I'm taking you back to that den for some rest." He would have protested, but he really wasn't feeling well. So he just let her drag him back to the den, his body hanging over her part way. Enough that she didn't drop him though, thankfully. By the time they got back, and she got him down on the ground again, Gard was already heading back over. He was dragging a large leaf cupped with some water in it.

"I found this on the ground! It must have collected in the rain!" He said when he let go of it in front of Okonoko. Weakly, the hyena raises his head, trying to get himself a drink. Gard slipped himself under his neck, offering him a little support so he could have some of the water. When it seemed he'd had enough, he settled down on the ground again, Gard scooting away from him once more. SErcy watched him, frowning thoughtfully.

"Is this enough?" Gard asked, "what now?"

"He needs to rest and regain some strength. I'll get him some fresh meat. The water was a big help though, I thank you for that. You really are a priceless part of our little team," Sercy praised warmly, which made Gard smile from ear to ear. "Now, there's something else I want you to get- it's a root that should help with the fever. But it's from a plant that likes to grow next to other plants- you can usually find it beneath bushes. Can you hunt for it for me? It'll look a little orange- very different from other roots."

"I'll find it!"

"You don't have to go through all this trouble," Okonoko huffed, closing his eyes, "I'm fine. I just need some sleep, that's all."

"Don't be silly Oko," Sercy told him, "you're our friend and we want to make sure you recover as quickly as possible. This root will help, so I want you to have it. Food will help, too. All I want you to do is rest until I get back. I mean it- don't try anything funny, you hear me?"

"Yes mother," muttered the hyena with a heavy sigh. He kept his eyes closed as he heard Gard scurry out of the den first, Sercy soon to head out as well. She went to find him some food, which he supposed he could use. It was very strange, having people care about him and want to see him get well again. How long had it been since anyone had cared about him? Had anyone ever cared about him to begin with? It was difficult to know for sure one way or another. But he supposed it didn't matter anymore. It didn't matter what happened to him. Whether others cared or not, he knew that he wasn't worth the worry.

It was foolish how much these two seemed to want to help a useless guy like him. He talked all about being okay with being alone, when really he didn't like it at all. Not after getting close to someone else and learning about them. It was impossible to go back to normal, it seemed.

What an idiot.

He must have drifted off to sleep at some point, the hyena waking up to find the smell of a fresh kill within the den. A hare was sitting next to him, waiting for him to consume. Sercy wasn't too far away, watching him like a hawk. "... thanks," he mumbled, "I'm surprised you were able to catch anything out here."

"Hey, I'm a lioness. Hunting is what we do," Sercy replied with a giggle, "even if I'm a princess and don't get to do it much, myself. Now you eat that. It's small but it should help you regain your energy. I'm sure Gard will be back soon."

"I don't get you two. Caring about someone like me... I'm not worth it," he admitted. To his shock, she laughed.

"Oko, what do you mean you're not worth it? You're our friend," she told him, "you're beyond worth. you're prized. There's no way we would be the same without you now. There's nothing out there worth as much as you to us."

".... I don't get it." He sighed.

"Maybe you will! Don't worry about it." She looked over at the entrance as Gard returned at that moment, bringing with him a mouthful of roots. He hadn't known how many she had wanted, of course. "Thank you, Gard. You really were the only one who could have been able to reach these roots. They're just the ones I was looking for!"

"Of course!" Gard hummed, "anything to help him feel better again!" He looked at Oko, grinning like an idiot with bits of mud and orange root in his teeth. This caused Oko to offer a soft laugh.

"You two are completely insane," he told the both of them, "but I suppose I wouldn't expect anything else from you at this point. I'm... glad that I'm here with the both of you. It's been a while since I had friends like you."

"I like hearing you use that work, Oko! Now eat these roots, with the meat and try to sleep." Of course, Oko had no choice but to listen. His friends wouldn't want it any other way.

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